The Fire Within a Ninjago Soldier
by The Mayor of Ninjago City
Summary: (Sequel to The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy) Civil war erupts in Ninjago when the Purples try to reestablish an ancient monarchy. The four Garmadon Ranch cowboys become soldiers for the Yellows, who wish to preserve freedom. What happens when Kai is captured and crosses paths with former sweetheart Skylor? Or when Kai's wife becomes a civilian prisoner? Will love help them survive?
1. Sunday Night in Late August

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy, pardners! I am The Mayor of Ninjago City, back with a new cowboy tale called _The Fire Within a Ninjago Soldier_. It is the sequel to my first fanfic, _The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy_.**

 **My original release date for this tale was going to be in January 2016, but I moved it up in order to time the publication of Chapter 6 on Christmas week, because it takes place on a Christmas Day. I'll try to post new chapters every Monday.**

 **The two cowboy stories are set in the latter half of the 1800s. Imagine that in this time period, the western border of the United States is at the Mississippi River, and Ninjago is a country that stretches from the Mississippi River westward to the Rocky Mountains.**

 **Here are the cities and towns that are located in Ninjago. WEST: Ninjago Town, the home town of our heroes. EAST: Sasnak City, the capital of Ninjago. SOUTH: Jamanakai Village and Ignacia. CENTRAL: Ouroborus. And in the United States, there is the big city of Ogacich. (Think of Chicago!)**

 **My first story tells the tale of the relationship between a saloon girl and a brown-haired cowboy from Garmadon Ranch, covering the weeks from the day they met to the day they married.**

 **The story you are now reading begins a few hours after the wedding festivities have concluded. It continues the tale of our young lovers, as well as chronicles the relationships between the other cowboys and the women who love them. (One such relationship is chronicled in the very first chapter.)**

 **This story is set** **against the backdrop of a Ninjago civil war, which breaks out in Chapter 10.**

 **In my previous tale, I dismantled all the canon family relationships except for those related to Garmadon: Lloyd, Misako, and Wu. In this story, there are two sets of canon family relationships that remain intact: the Garmadon relatives, and the Chen father/daughter relationship from Season 4.**

 **Read and enjoy! But if you don't like it, then simply stop reading and go on to read _The Fire Within_ , a great fanfic on this website from measuremesky, who is a family member of mine. She gave me permission to transport her main OC, Sam, and another OC, Brooke, back to the 1800s and give them different family backgrounds.**

 **Here we go...**

* * *

 **Prologue**

Several centuries ago, Ninjago was ruled by a monarchy. The kings in the earlier centuries ruled benevolently and were adored by their subjects.

As the years went by, however, the kings became increasingly tyrannical. They oppressed their subjects with high taxes, unjust laws, and severe punishments, to the point where the masses were becoming slaves.

But about one hundred years before our story begins, the monarchy system of government was overthrown by brave souls who believed in the dignity and freedom of the individual citizen. Once again, peace and prosperity inhabited the land, as a new form of government - one that was run by an elected governor and was of the people, for the people, and by the people - was established. The capital city was Sasnak City, located on the eastern edge of Ninjago, near its border with the United States.

There were some Ninjagoans, however, who wished to see the monarchy reinstated. They did not think that the general public was educated enough to rule themselves properly. Over the last quarter century, enough Ninjagoans felt the same way that they formed an alliance among themselves. They became known as the Purples, named for the color of the royal robes once worn by the monarchs of the past. They gathered in a remote area of Snake Territory, which bordered Ninjago to the south, and formed a plan to overthrow the current government and re-seat a king on the throne.

Those who opposed the reinstatement of the monarchy called themselves the Yellows, for on a color wheel, yellow and purple form a pair of colors that lie opposite each other. The Yellows believed that the Purples held an outdated, condescending view of the citizenry, but they did not think the Purples were truly a serious threat to the peace of Ninjago.

They were proven wrong...

* * *

 **Chapter 1 - Sunday Night in Late August**

Only the barest hint of daylight was left in the western sky as a smoky black horse leisurely made its way from Garmadon Ranch with two riders on its back - a handsome, muscular cowboy named Cole, who worked at the ranch, and a brown-haired saloon girl named Brooke, who sat behind Cole while holding on to his waist.

Cole was taking Brooke back home to her residence in Ninjago Town. She easily could have returned with her fellow employees of the now-closed Morro Saloon: Jenny and Star, who were the other saloon girls living in the rooms next to Brooke, and Rufus the saloon bartender. Brooke had arrived at the ranch with them that morning, and they all had been paid well by the ranch owner, Mr. Wu, to serve food and refreshments at a wedding barbecue that afternoon. The barbecue was held in celebration of the nuptials of Cole's fellow ranch hand Kai and his bride Sam, and also ranch hand Jay and his new wife Nya.

Instead of going back with her coworkers, Brooke opted to accept Cole's offer to personally escort her home. Cole didn't tell Brooke this, but he had made the offer because he had enjoyed her company for most of the afternoon, once she was done attending to her paid duties, so it hadn't felt right to him to let the day end with just a simple wave of goodbye to her before he turned in for the night at the ranch bunkhouse.

Cole had known Brooke for close to three years now, ever since he first started patronizing the Morro Saloon, and she had served him many a refreshment as just a friendly saloon girl. But recent events had caused him to rethink things about his life, and about her.

Up until three weeks ago, Cole's life basically revolved around the cattle he tended and the poker games he played on Saturday nights at the saloon with his friends from other ranches around the county. But then he witnessed the abduction of his friends Kai and Sam by that scoundrel Morro, and the tall cowboy joined Sheriff Lloyd Garmadon's posse to go after them.

The posse traveled miles and miles in their quest to rescue the pair, including trekking through the dangerous desert, not knowing if their quest would succeed. Indeed, if it were not for the miraculous glint of sunlight off a small hairpin, they would not have found Kai in the desert, and the cowboy with the red kerchief would not be walking above snakes today. Kai also managed to stay out of the bone orchard the next night, when Morro took a shot at him at a log house in the Stone Mountains. But a second later, Cole had witnessed Morro meeting his Maker as Sheriff Lloyd defended Kai with a return of gunfire. The brevity of life had definitely been illustrated for Cole in those few days.

The preciousness of love had also been illustrated for Cole recently. He had watched the loving way in which the rescued Kai and Sam had interacted with each other on the return journey home to Ninjago Town. And shortly afterward, both Kai's and Jay's proposals of marriage had been accepted by the women who loved them. Cole could not deny that he felt envious of the love his fellow ranch hands had found, and that he felt doubtful that any woman would ever bestow on him the same sort of affection that Sam and Nya showered on their men.

Until yesterday, at a meal held immediately after a funeral.

The elderly Bansha, legendary in Ninjago Town for her marksmanship, had passed away, and Brooke had helped the church ladies prepare for the post-funeral meal by baking cakes. One cake, however, she held back from the general dessert offerings and privately presented to the black-haired cowboy. She was kind of shy about it, which differed from her usual brassy personality. Cole was touched by her gesture, that Brooke knew enough about him to know he liked cake and cared enough about him to make sure he got his share of the tasty dessert.

Cole felt like he wanted to present something to Brooke in return, so today, at the wedding barbecue, he gave her the jeweled ladies' hairpin he had won as a humorous prize at the recent gentlemen's night poker game. Since Brooke tended to wear a lot of bright colors and glittery jewelry, he thought maybe she would like it. He felt a little nervous giving it to her, not knowing how she would react, but she seemed happy to receive it, and she agreed to accompany him on a short errand to deliver Sam's and Nya's steamer trunks from the main house of the ranch to their respective new cottages.

Cole enjoyed Brooke's company as they completed the errand. It was nice to spend some one-on-one time with her in quiet conversation. Normally when they talked, they were in the noisy saloon with lots of people around, and she wasn't able to spend more than two or three minutes at a time with him before she had to attend to another patron.

When dusk fell and the barbecue ended, Cole was not ready to end his time with Brooke. In a panic, he blurted out his offer to escort her home. To his relief, she accepted, and now here they were on the road heading toward town, riding his gelding, Rocky.

Brooke carried a lantern to light their way. The just-risen moon also provided a fair amount of illumination of the trail, though it was not a full moon tonight, as it was a few nights ago.

"You all right back there, Brooke?" Cole asked his passenger sitting behind him.

"Oh, I'm doing just fine. Thanks for asking!" Brooke replied. As she held on to Cole's waist with her free arm, she could feel his hard abs, and she prayed that he didn't notice her quick pulse as she clung to him.

"So do you ride horses?" he inquired.

"Afraid not. Been a town girl all my life, so I never had the chance to learn."

"That's right, I remember you did say once that you were from Ogacich. That's definitely one big town, even by United States standards. What was it like, growing up there?"

Brooke took a deep breath, and then she began to tell her story.


	2. Brooke's Background Story

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **I couldn't wait for Monday to publish another chapter, and I realized my original Chapter 2 was bigger than my usual 1000-1500 word size, so I split it so that I can publish today and still publish Monday without messing up my timetable.**

 **It's Thanksgiving Day in the U.S., so I wish a nice holiday to you folks and a nice day to everyone else.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2 - Brooke's Background Story**

"I suppose growing up in Ogacich was all right," Brooke said in response to Cole's question about her home city. "Daddy was a factory man, so we lived in a neighborhood where other factory families lived. It was kind of a rough area, but everyone knew Daddy was a decent man, so the thugs left our family alone. Daddy didn't make much money, but he and Mama made sure there was something to eat on the table every night for me and my sisters and brothers. Though sometimes supper was only a cupful of beans."

"How many sisters and brothers do you have?" Cole asked.

"Three brothers and five sisters. I'm the oldest of them all."

Cole chuckled. "Whoa! Your house sure had a passel of little shavers!"

Brooke chuckled with him. "Our rowhouse was cozy indeed! Especially as everyone got older."

Because she was sitting behind him on the horse, Cole could not see her face, but by her voice he could tell her demeanor had changed from jovial to serious when she said, "Everyone getting older also meant the stomachs got bigger and more food was needed to fill them. I know Mama and Daddy didn't want to, but they arranged for me to work after school as a barmaid at a neighborhood tavern owned by my aunt and her husband. I liked the fancy dress I had to wear, but otherwise it was...rough. But I learned what to say and how to act in order to get the biggest tips out of the customers."

Suddenly she said, "I'm sorry. I should stop yammering about unhappy things."

"No, go on," Cole urged. "I asked because I wanted to know about your time growing up." He was interested in learning the story of the lovely, willowy young woman currently holding on to his waist. She was close enough for him to detect her wonderful vanilla scent.

Brooke continued. "Well, all right, then." She took a breath. "One day, when I was cleaning up tables just before the supper hour, there was a loud noise and the ground rumbled. There'd been an explosion at the factory. Dozens of workers died, including every man on Daddy's line."

Upon hearing the awful information, the cowboy let out a low whistle.

"Daddy survived," she said, "despite the terrible burns on his back, but his injuries weren't just physical. Every night for months he'd wake up screaming from nightmares about the explosion. But he wouldn't talk about his dreams to Mama or me."

Brooke paused to slightly shift her position on the horse before continuing. "Mama met with this doctor that the company brought in. This doctor wasn't like a usual doctor. He was an expert in this new thing called...um...psychology. This doctor thought maybe Daddy was having nightmares because he saw the gruesome way his friends died. Some of them had their arms and legs blown off. One man even lost his head."

She sighed. "The doctor would meet with Daddy regularly to talk about what happened. And I guess it's helped, 'cause according to Mama's letters over the past few years, he has nightmares a lot less often now, and he meets with the doctor less often now."

"So it sounds like he's doing better," Cole said.

"He is," Brooke confirmed. "He eventually started working again, helping to make pianos in a small workshop. He doesn't want to do factory work anymore, and no one can blame him for that choice. As it was, he couldn't work at all for a long time due to his burns. While he was healing, I had to quit school and go to work at the tavern all the time."

"Mmm," Cole murmured in sympathy. "That must have been tough."

"It was," Brooke agreed. "And in addition to all that, my aunt died shortly after that. She was my mama's sister."

"Her husband got lonely after my aunt passed away. And, unfortunately, he began to pay more attention to me - the wrong kind of attention. I was always tall for my age, so maybe he thought I was older than I was. One day, while he was paying me my weekly wages, he went a little too far."

Cole began to get upset at this man who had not treated Brooke like the lady she was, but he had no time to dwell on the thought, for the saloon girl went on with her story.

"I got away from him and ran to tell Mama, but she said she didn't believe me. This man had been married to her older sister for twenty years, so she thought that after knowing him for so long, he wasn't capable of that sort of thing."

"Well, I knew I'd be in a bad situation if I stayed, so I decided to run away. It meant leaving Daddy and Mama and my brothers and sisters without a steady income, but I figured my brother was old enough to start bringing in some money. I used the wages I'd just been paid and I bought a train ticket to Sasnak City, the farthest stop on the line from Ogacich."

"Thank goodness I met Jenny on the train ride," Brooke said, speaking of her fellow saloon girl. "Jenny said she was heading out here on the stagecoach from Sasnak City to start working for Morro, so I tagged along."

"When I got settled here, I wrote to Mama to tell her where I was. Mama wrote back and said that if I hadn't have skedaddled so suddenly, maybe something could have been done, but at that point she couldn't do anything. But she said she loved me, and so I started sending some money back home every time I got paid. Been doing that for a little over three years now."

Cole thought for a moment. "That's right. You came to Ninjago Town just before I did," he commented. "Have you thought about going back to Ogacich for a visit?"

Brooke didn't respond right away. Cole didn't say anything as he waited for her to speak again. But after waiting a whole minute, all he heard from her was a sniffle.


	3. A Courtship Begins

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Thank you all for your enthusiastic response to my latest fanfic!**

 **Special shoutouts go to:**

 **ninjagomasteroftheforce - Thanks for your kind comment, and I'm glad you liked my "Ninjago Cowboy" fanfic!**

 **Princess Bunny - If you want to see Cole and Brooke kissing, keep reading!**

 **lovesgod12 - Do you read about the American civil war? This story is very loosely based on it. I've visited at least four battlefields.**

 **Kai's Girlfriend - Thank you for your kind comment and all the kind comments you've posted since the very first chapter of my very first fanfic.**

 **Naruby7 - Glad you like Brooke! My family member measuremesky created her in the story** _ **The Fire Within**_ **as a girl who pays attention to style and fashion, so I'm going to keep that trait in the 1800s version of her.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3 - A Courtship Begins**

The small sound of distress from Brooke, a sniffle, made Cole distressed. He must have said something wrong.

Quickly he noted that right now they were about to cross a footbridge that led over a tributary of the Ninjago River. He knew there was a makeshift bench on the other side of the footbridge, so he led Rocky there and halted the gelding.

"Do you mind if we sit for a spell and talk?" he asked her, talking to her from over his shoulder. He wanted to apologize to her while facing her, so that meant he needed to get off the horse.

Brooke sniffled again. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Cole. I didn't mean to spoil your evening with my blubbering. It's...just..."

Cole went ahead and dismounted. "Here, let's sit on this bench," he urged her.

Brooke nodded and allowed him to help her dismount the horse and lead her to the bench, where they sat down. She set the lantern on the ground next to them.

From the pocket of his Sunday-best coat, still wearing it after today's wedding ceremony and barbecue, he took out his black kerchief and offered it to her. "You can use this if you want. I only used it four times today," he joked in an attempt to make her smile.

It worked. Through her tears, Brooke chuckled at his attempt at humor as she took it from him, which in turn made him feel better. He waited until she regained her composure, then he spoke.

"I'm sorry for anything I said that made you upset," he apologized.

"No, no, there's nothing for you to be sorry for," she assured him, using the kerchief to dab the last bit of moisture from her eyes. "It's just that I HAVE wanted to go back to Ogacich and visit my family, but I'm afraid to." She handed the kerchief back to him.

"What are you afraid of?" he asked as he put back the kerchief in his pocket.

She swallowed. "Actually, it's WHO I'm afraid of. That man who was married to my aunt. I don't even want to call him an uncle. He's still in the neighborhood, and I'm afraid that if he sees me again he'll...try something. Again."

Cole's anger flared up at a man who he had never met, yet whose attempts to take liberties with the lovely willowy brunette scared her so badly to the point where she feared visiting her own kin.

Then he thought of something.

"Could your family come out to visit you?" he asked.

"It would cost too much," Brooke frowned. "My oldest brother is 17, so he's old enough to fend for himself, but all my other brothers and sisters would have to travel along with Mama and Daddy."

The disappointment in Brooke's hazel eyes, illuminated by the lantern, bothered Cole.

He boldly took her dainty hands in his large, capable ones.

"I'll help you out with the money," he announced.

"Oh, Cole, I couldn't ask you to do that," Brooke protested, silently enjoying the feel of his strong hands clasping hers. "That's too generous of you. And besides, I don't know where they would all stay once they got here. I'm not sure Mr. Noble would want a passel of young 'uns running around his hotel." The hotel proprietor seemed a bit fussy when it came to maintaining an orderly environment on his premises.

"Leave that detail to me," Cole said with authority.

Brooke began to protest again. "But..."

"Not another peep from you, Miss Dawson," Cole chided her. "It's settled. I'm going to help you bring your family here to visit."

Brooke realized she was not going to change the mind of this stubborn black-haired cowboy. She accepted her defeat graciously.

"Thank you," she smiled gratefully.

Cole looked into her hazel eyes again. This time, they shone with affection. For him.

As he gazed at her, Cole focused on the sensation of her hands in his. Against his rough, calloused skin, her hands were so gosh darn silky smooth. He didn't think he could touch anything else softer on earth.

Until his lips touched hers.

He couldn't exactly explain how the space between them had disappeared, but it had. His heart pounded in his ears as he deeply breathed in her vanilla scent and tasted her exquisite kisses.

His mind swirled. For several minutes, he lost track of what time it was, where he was, even what his name was. All that mattered was her. And her sweet tokens of affection.

Their lips finally parted and they sat back on the bench.

Cole swallowed hard, reeling from the dizziness he was feeling. "I reckon we'd best be on our way," he said thickly.

"I suppose we should be going," Brooke concurred, breathing rapidly.

Blinking his eyes several times in an effort to regain his composure, Cole stood up and helped Brooke stand up, still holding on to the soft hands he had been clasping for a while. He let go of one hand to grab the lantern but still clung to the other as they walked back to where Rocky stood, patiently waiting for his passengers.

Cole set the lantern down and turned to face Brooke in order to hoist her on the horse's back. But instead of putting his hands on her hips to lift her, his strong arms - as if acting on their own accord - slid around her thin waist and pulled her tightly against his muscular frame, enveloping her almost to the point where she disappeared from sight. His lips happily reacquainted themselves with hers.

Her lips occupied, Brooke slid her arms around the neck of the kind, handsome cowboy. She was in no hurry to end the evening with her hero.

Rocky would have to keep standing there, patiently waiting.


	4. Monday in Late August

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Monday! Thanks to all the readers, followers and favers of this story!**

 **Special shoutouts go to:**

 **Naruby7 - I wasn't planning to take the plot along the theory you offered, but I like the way you think!**

 **Princess Bunny - Keep reading through at least Chapter 15, and I think you'll be pleased!**

 **ninjagomasteroftheforce - Look for Cole and Brooke to reappear in Chapter 6!**

 **FirstFandomFangirl - Before I rearranged some chapters, Cole was kissing Brooke even one chapter earlier!**

 **lovesgod12 - Cole and his fellow ranch hands are indeed** **gentlemen - honorable and chivalrous!**

 **MMM - I originally was planning for Cole to take Brooke back to her hometown but then I realized that in the 1800s, it would scandalous for an unmarried young woman to travel on an overnight trip with an unmarried young man who was unrelated to her. So I decided that if Cole couldn't take Brooke to her family, he could take the family to Brooke!**

 **In Chapter 4, the focus switches from the black-haired cowboy to the cowboy who wears a red kerchief...**

* * *

 **Chapter 4 - Monday in Late August**

A gentle morning rain pattered on the roof of a cottage in a secluded corner of Garmadon Ranch, but the two occupants of the residence - a brown-haired cowboy and his brand new wife - were oblivious to the weather that was occurring on the day after their wedding.

Samantha was still peacefully sleeping, so she was oblivious to everything. She lay on her back with her head resting against the chest of her new husband. Kai was awake and lying on his side, his attention solely focused on the blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty whose waist he was encircling with his arm.

Kai smiled as he propped himself up on his elbow to gaze at her. Exactly three weeks ago, during their imprisonment in a dirty jail cell in Skeleton Territory, he had awakened next to Sam and wished that her title was Mrs. Kai Smith. That wish was now reality.

Sam began to stir. Her eyelids fluttered open. At first, a confused look appeared in her eyes as she momentarily struggled to remember where she was. Her surroundings were indeed unfamiliar to her - she had arrived at her brand new residence just last night, after the sun went down, so she had not yet seen the new home in the daylight.

But the scent of the fresh new wood of their newly built cottage, the feel of the comfortable bed, and the warmth of her man lying next to her quickly refreshed her memory.

Sam looked up into the twinkling brown eyes of the handsome cowboy. "Good morning," she drowsily greeted him with a smile.

"Good morning to you, Mrs. Smith," Kai replied, grinning. "How was your sleep?"

"Fine," she cheerily answered, her eyes still half closed. "And how was yours?"

"Good," he murmured, lowering his head to give her a kiss.

The patter of the rain on the roof caught their attention. They turned their eyes toward the window and could see the raindrops fall against the dark background of the trunks of the trees that surrounded their dwelling.

"If I didn't have the day off, I'd be soaked by now," Kai commented. Mr. Wu had given Kai and Jay the day off today, in recognition of the magnitude of the life commitment they had made to their women yesterday. Tomorrow, however, the ranch owner expected his two newly married employees to show up at the bunkhouse in the morning, bright and early. Here in western Ninjago, a land not quite fully tamed by civilization, you had to work in order to survive.

"What time is the supper tonight?" Kai asked his bride. Tonight they had been invited to the main house of Garmadon Ranch for an informal supper with Mr. Wu and the other ranch residents. After supper, they would open the thoughtful gifts that wedding guests had left yesterday for them as well as for Jay and Nya.

Sam recalled what the housekeeper had told her. "Miss Gayle said to be there at five o'clock."

"Oh, good, we can sleep till four." Kai lay back on the bed, folding the arm that was farthest from Sam behind his head. He slid the arm closest to Sam under her neck and embraced her shoulders and prepared to go back to sleep.

Sam decided she wanted to face him as she fell back asleep, so she rolled on her side. This small simple act would ordinarily pose no problem, but Sam had severely injured the skin on her lower back less than three weeks ago, and though the wounds were healing nicely, they were still bothersome. Sam tried not to grimace from the discomfort her injuries gave her as she turned her body. She drew her arm across the virile chest of her new husband to help pull herself toward him and nestle herself under his arm.

"Comfortable now?" he asked, patting her arm as he rested his cheek against her tousled blond tresses and closed his eyes.

Sam sighed. "Mmm-hmm." She closed her eyes, too.

She tried to go back to sleep, but she realized that Kai was still patting her arm, but in a rhythmic pattern to some song.

"What are you doing?" she asked, keeping her eyes closed.

"Oh, sorry," he said, stopping. "That song from yesterday, the one that Cole played on the harmonica, is still playing in my head."

Sam smiled, opening her eyes. "That was a good one. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed the whole barbecue. Weddings are fun." She gave her husband a little squeeze.

"Maybe there can be another barbecue if Cole and Brooke get hitched," Kai commented.

Sam knew that Brooke was sweet on the black-haired cowboy, for Brooke had personally told her so last week.

"Does Cole like Brooke?" Sam asked. She wanted to find out what insight Kai had on the relationship between the saloon girl and the tall ranch hand who wore a black kerchief.

Kai began rhythmically patting her arm again. "Yep, he likes her. Ever since she gave him that cake at the funeral meal, he's been acting all loco. And there was this jeweled ladies' hairpin he won at our gentlemen's night poker game that he said he was going to give her."

"Oh, the hairpin." She remembered that, while dancing with Zane yesterday, she had seen Cole give something to Brooke, and Zane had guessed it was the hairpin.

Sam's thoughts drifted to Zane. "Has Zane ever said he liked a certain girl?" she asked Kai. Sam had arrived in Ninjago Town only a month ago, so she was not yet caught up on the past histories of the cowboys.

"Maybe one or two," Kai remembered. "But the type of girl he'd probably be happiest with doesn't really exist around here. He'd probably like a girl who's interesting in doing some traveling around the world and seeing different cultures and the like. Most girls around here don't care about going any farther than Sasnak City!" he chuckled.

Sam thought about an old friend of hers from her girlhood, Mary Adams. Mary had been the adventurous one in their social circle, and she had talked of traveling to various places when they grew up. Sam hadn't had any communication with Mary in recent years, but maybe, for Zane's sake, she'd write a letter to Mary and see what her old friend was up to.

Sam realized that Kai had resumed his patting. "You have that song in your head again," she informed him.

"I reckon I do," he chuckled, but this time he did not stop.

Sam raised her head to look at him. He was smiling with his eyes closed.

"We've talked about Cole and we've talked about Zane," he said, finally opening his eyes to look back at her. "What do you suppose Jay and Nya are doing right now?"

Kai laughed as Sam blushed at the possibilities.

"Well, what do _you_ think they're doing right now?" she sputtered, turning the question back on him.

A mischievous twinkle appeared in his soft brown eyes. "They could be doing this," he replied as he raised his head, giving her a quick kiss and making her smile.

"Or they could be doing this," he continued, tenderly cupping her cheek with his hand. His lips touched hers once again, this time exploring them for a full minute.

Kai detected a hint of her exhilarating strawberry fragrance, which had fueled his longing for her last night. Once again, it began to cast its spell on him.

"Or…" he murmured, his eyes locking with Sam's into a steady gaze as he guided her to rest on her back, gently so as not to aggravate her injuries. " _We_ could do this..."

The rain continued to patter on the roof for the entire day.


	5. Tuesday in Late August

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Monday! I'm happy because yesterday I got to watch several hours of Season 4 of Ninjago on Cartoon Network's "Lego Day." Episode 40 ("Spellbound") is my all-time favorite Ninjago episode! The parachute scene is epic. And what fangirl of the red ninja doesn't want to cry when Kai's heart is broken by Skylor?**

 **Thank you all for reading and commenting on the last chapter, especially FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, Princess Bunny, lovesgod12, and Naruby7! I was a bit nervous about publishing it, but measuremesky encouraged me to go ahead.**

 **In the chapter below, you'll find that I review some of the events of my first story,** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **. I felt that I needed to provide 1) some background for those of you who haven't yet read it, and 2) a refresh for those of you that did read, because almost two months have gone by since I finished it.**

 **This chapter is therefore longer than usual, so grab a mug of cocoa before you settle in to read! XD**

* * *

 **Chapter 5 - Tuesday in Late August**

At dusk on a Tuesday evening, just two days after their wedding, Kai and Sam gently swayed back and forth on the porch swing of their cottage, holding each other close after enjoying their first supper in their new home. It was a simple supper of flapjacks and bacon, for Sam was a novice cook, and their brand new pantry was not yet fully stocked.

Today, the cowboy who wore a red kerchief had returned to the range after enjoying the day off yesterday granted to him by Mr. Wu. Tending the cattle today proved to be messy work, thanks to the muddy conditions caused by yesterday's rain. When Kai returned to the cottage this evening, he had to give his horse Flame a bath. Then he rinsed himself off by jumping into the nearby Ninjago River, which lazily flowed just a few dozen yards away from their porch.

Sam spent her day working on turning the new cottage into a cozy home. She knew she still had a long way to go before she reached that goal, but today she found places to keep the thoughtful wedding gifts given to them. Also today, she began to write thank-you notes for the kind gifts.

As the couple relaxed on the porch on this warm summer evening, Sam knew this would be a perfect time for her to reveal to Kai some interesting information she had learned from Mr. Wu before the wedding ceremony two days ago.

This interesting information was the latest in a series of recent interesting events in Sam's life. She definitely could not say Ninjago Town was a boring place. The past month had been a whirlwind ever since she arrived here from the eastern United States to take a job as a saloon girl, in a quest to make a life for herself in which people accepted her for herself and not because of the million dollars she had inherited from her late father, business tycoon Cyrus Borg.

Her first few days in Ninjago Town had gone well. She made friends with the other saloon girls and met a sweet, handsome brown-haired cowboy named Kai. But though she tried to keep her moneyed background a secret, her boss - an unscrupulous wealthy businessman named Morro - discovered her past, and he ended up abducting her, and Kai as well, in order to get his hands on her money.

Morro and his two accomplices whisked the young couple into Skeleton Territory, located along Ninjago's western border and far away from Ninjago Town. One accomplice to the kidnapping was Bansha, an elderly woman whose marksmanship was legendary and whose daughter had been Morro's love interest.

Unfortunately, during the captivity, Morro was able to acquire the heiress' wealth, but the romance between Sam and Kai blossomed. Sam also formed a friendship with Bansha, especially after the septuagenarian suddenly fell ill and the responsibility for her care rested on Sam. Bansha recognized the love between the young woman and the cowboy and regretted her own role in kidnapping them, for Morro had no intention of releasing Sam after he had obtained her money.

The couple was eventually rescued by a posse of their friends, led by Sheriff Lloyd Garmadon. Sheriff Lloyd killed Morro when the villain attempted to murder Kai. Upon the death of the scoundrel, his entire fortune - which at that point included Sam's money - automatically became the possession of Bansha, according to a will found in his office.

Shortly after the group returned to Ninjago Town, Kai proposed marriage to Sam, and they were married one week later, just this past Sunday.

Bansha passed away last Thursday night after her short illness. Sam had learned from Mr. Wu, before the wedding ceremony, that Bansha herself had drawn up a will. At the time the frail woman had made her will, all she thought she owned was a gun, a horse, and a few other items. She never knew she had inherited a fortune, for she lapsed into a pre-death coma before anyone had a chance to tell her.

"Kai?" Sam said quietly as she sat on the porch swing, nestled under his arm with her own arm encircling his waist. She was testing to see if he was awake, for neither of them had said anything in a while. The gentle swaying of the swing on this warm evening made it hard to resist napping.

"Mmm?" Kai responded drowsily, his cheek resting on her golden blonde tresses. His eyes were closed.

"Mr. Wu told me something interesting before the wedding ceremony on Sunday."

"What's that?" Kai asked in a clearer voice, though he still kept his eyes closed.

"Bansha made a will."

"She did?" Kai now opened his eyes. He was sensing that Sam was not telling him this just to make idle conversation.

Even though Bansha had died a rich woman, part of that money was Sam's. However, Sam had few resources left to pursue a claim to it in the courts. Kai had some money to hire lawyers, but not enough. He had wondered to himself if maybe they could borrow funds from Mr. Wu to pay the lawyers. If Bansha willed the money away to yet another person, that would indeed muddy up the process, and they would need even more money to pay the lawyers.

"She named a sole beneficiary," Sam told her new husband.

Kai raised his head and turned to look at her. At least there would only be one beneficiary to deal with in the courts. "And who is it that just became a big toad in the puddle?" he asked.

She looked up at him with a smile. "Me!"

"What?!" Kai sat up and planted his feet firmly on the deck of the porch, stopping the movement of the swing.

Sam chuckled at his reaction. "I guess she was trying to make up for Morro taking all I had, by giving me all she had."

Kai let out a low whistle as he ran his fingers through his spiky brown hair. "Well, I reckon this saves us the bother of going to court to get your money back."

He paused, then continued. "And on top of getting your own money back, you get all of Morro's, too! It's only right, after what that varmint did." He kissed the top of her head and settled back into the porch swing, resuming the rocking.

"Mmm-hmm," Sam agreed. "Now I guess I have to make some decisions about some things, like his properties," she said as she nestled under his arm again. "Like that log house in the Stone Mountains. And the saloon right here in Ninjago Town. I was thinking I could loan Rufus the money to buy it from me. Brooke and the other girls told me last week that he wished he had the money to buy it."

The Morro Saloon in Ninjago Town had been closed per the orders of Sheriff Lloyd on the day Sam and Kai were kidnapped, after Morro had evaded arrest on a separate charge. But this action had unfortunately left Rufus the bartender, the saloon girls, and Lou the piano player without jobs for nigh on a month now. One saloon girl had already left town, looking for another job. If the saloon didn't reopen soon, or another entrepreneur did not come forward to open a new establishment, they all would have to leave town or else find jobs in a different line of work.

"I have to decide about his horse, too," Sam added. "I'd rather not keep it. Too many bad memories."

Sam's worst memory while sitting atop Morro's coal black gelding was when Morro galloped away with her, her hands bound, after the villain had shot Kai in the foot and left him stranded in the hot desert to die. Fortunately, the posse had found the cowboy just before sunset.

"It'll be easy to find a buyer for that horse," Kai said. "On Sunday, Rusty told me that his boss over at the Double S Ranch was looking to add a gelding to his stable."

"Then I can use the proceeds to buy a horse of my own choosing. One that would be patient with a greenhorn rider like me," Sam chuckled.

"Don't worry - you'll be an expert horsewoman in no time at all!" Kai assured her, squeezing her shoulders. "And I'll help you find a good animal. But besides the horse and the saloon, have you thought about what else you want to do with the money?"

As far as Kai was concerned, the money was Sam's alone, and he wasn't going to tell her what to do with it. He knew she would make wise decisions that would in turn benefit her, him, and their future family. But he was planning to be the main provider for their family, based on the income from his employment as a rancher for a great boss, a job in which he could spend his days in the fresh air under the wide open sky. Several weeks ago, he had already spent time contemplating what it would be like to have a wealthy wife. It was when he and Sam had just been kidnapped by Morro, Bansha, and Archer, and they were being taken on the long ride to Skeleton Territory.

Sam knew that when Kai had asked what she would do with the money, he was just curious. She knew he was not planning to use it to live on, and she wasn't planning to use it to live on, either. She was planning to live a simple life as a rancher's wife. She would have stayed back in the eastern United States if she wanted to live like high-falutin' folks.

Sam did, however, want to use her daddy's hard-earned money to honor his memory and benefit the community.

She sighed. "Well, I was thinking of possibly starting a charitable foundation and establish something in Daddy's name. Ninjago Town's a fine community, but we could use things like a hospital and a library."

"True," Kai agreed. "Those sound like good ideas."

Then he thought of another question. "Who else knows that you inherited all this wealth?"

"Just a few people," Sam answered. "Mr. Wu knows because he's the executor of her will. And so does the lawyer who drafted the will. And me. And now you. And I guess the bank president will, too, when I set up an account for Mr. Wu to deposit the money in."

"How many more people do you want to know?"

"I'd rather nobody know. I know there are good people in Ninjago Town who wouldn't care one way or the other, but I don't want people to treat me differently, either better or worse, because of the money. I'm already a little nervous because Mr. Wu said not to be surprised if a newspaper reporter finds out."

"But, Sam, if you donate big money to a hospital and it's named after your daddy, people are going to know you're wealthy. If you loan money to Rufus to buy the saloon, he's gonna know you're wealthy."

Sam was silent. Kai had made a very good point.

Kai didn't mean to cast a pall on her ideas, so he made a suggestion. "Maybe you could give money to Mr. Wu so he could buy the saloon, then he could be the one to loan money to Rufus and pay you back with what Rufus pays him. So Mr. Wu would just be a sort of a middle man."

He continued. "Also, maybe you could anonymously donate money toward a hospital first, and it could be called a simple name like Ninjago Town General Hospital. Then in a year or two, you could donate money toward a library and it could be called the Cyrus Borg Memorial Library, or whatever you had in mind. By then, people in town will have gotten to know you as a person, so when they do find out you had wealth for all the time they knew you, and you still acted like an average person, the wealth part won't matter."

"I could do that," Sam said slowly, warming up to Kai's ideas.

At the same time, the thought crossed Kai's mind that maybe building their home in such a secluded part of Garmadon Ranch wasn't such a good idea. While he was out tending to the ranch cattle, Sam was going to be here at the cottage by herself for a majority of daylight hours, when she wasn't in town taking care of errands or at the main house taking homemaking lessons from Miss Gayle.

What if some dirty varmint found out where she lived and decided to go after her in order to get his hands on her fortune? Morro had already tried, with success, to go after it. Heck, what if some dirty varmint decided to go after her regardless of the fortune? If Sam needed help, the nearest person she could turn to would be Nya, but Nya and Jay's cottage was two miles away. The main house was four miles away.

Kai then mentally slapped himself for thinking such negative thoughts at a time of celebration in his life. He shook his head to clear his mind and think more logically. It was unlikely anything bad would happen. But there were a few precautions they could take.

He decided it would be a good idea for the couple to get a dog. A pet would keep Sam company as well as offer protection if something sinister came up.

Kai would also make sure Sam knew how to ride a horse. He had already given her a few lessons on the trail back to Ninjago Town from Skeleton Territory, so he would just continue to instruct her.

Finally, he would teach Sam how to use a gun, just in case a situation arose. He was well aware that Bansha had owned a gun - the old woman had pointed it at him on the day of the kidnapping after she shot Sheriff Lloyd's hat right off his head. Now that Bansha had died, the gun belonged to Sam. It was probably somewhere in the main house of the ranch. People knew that Bansha had a soft spot in her heart for Sam, so no one would think twice if Sam took ownership of her gun.

Kai decided to suggest to Jay that Jay also get a dog for Nya and teach her to shoot a gun. Nya already knew how to ride a horse.

"You all right, Kai?" Sam asked, interrupting his thoughts. She had noticed he was quiet.

Kai decided he needed a distraction after the seriousness of their discussion. He rose out of the porch swing and then gently pulled Sam up to a standing position. "Let's celebrate Bansha's blessing! And I know one way to do that..."

From the mischievous sparkle in his brown eyes, Sam immediately knew what he had in mind.

"Kai!" she laughingly protested, letting out a squeal as he scooped her up, bridal-style. He did this carefully, due to her back injuries.

Kai carried Sam back into the cottage. "Why not?" he asked, grinning that adorable lopsided grin of his. "It's almost time to turn in for the night anyway."

One tender kiss from him on her lips, and she offered no more protest.


	6. The Rest of That Year

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Surprise! I'm publishing this chapter on a Thursday because I want to time the publishing of the next chapter for Monday, the week of Christmas.**

 **To FirstFandomFangirl: *LOL***

 **To Princess Bunny: *LOL***

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6 - The Rest of That Year**

In September, the Morro Saloon reopened as the McAllister Saloon, thanks to the new proprietor, Rufus McAllister, formerly the bartender, who took out a business loan offered by Mr. Wu.

During the autumn months, Cole and Zane traveled to the saloon each Saturday night. Jay and Kai accompanied them about once a month, to say howdy to their friends from other ranches and catch up on news, but mainly they stayed home with their new brides.

Cole resumed his weekly poker games with his friends from other ranches around the county, just like he had done before the saloon name change. He resumed bantering with Brooke and the other saloon girls, also like he had done before the saloon name change.

But now that Brooke was his girl, Saturday nights took on a new specialness. He now noticed a certain twinkle in the hazel eyes of the willowy brunette when she looked at him, and a certain softness in the touch of her hand on his shoulder when she came around to serve a drink, and it awed him to know that he was the beneficiary of her affection.

Cole's fellow poker players, knowing that Brooke was now his sweetheart, joked that Ninjago Town saloon girls weren't safe around those Garmadon Ranch boys, now that the affections of Nya, Sam, and Brooke had all been captivated by the suavity of the cowboys who worked for said ranch. The other cowboys expressed relief that there was only one remaining Garmadon Ranch hand, Zane, with whom they had to compete in order to court Jenny, Star, and the newest saloon girls who Rufus had hired to round out a full staff of six, now that the new Mrs. Walker and the new Mrs. Smith were not returning to employment.

Though Cole enjoyed the notoriety of being Brooke's man, he found that there was one disadvantage. It seemed that at least once every Saturday night, Cole would look over at Brooke and see that her outgoing personality was being misinterpreted by a new and slightly inebriated saloon patron as an invitation to get to know her further, even though Brooke would make it clear to him that she was taken. In those cases, Cole had to interrupt his poker game to set the man straight, occasionally with a fist behind the saloon.

* * *

The colorful leaves of the trees in the autumn eventually yielded to the wind of December, and Christmastime rolled around.

The glorious blue Christmas Day sky perfectly accented the bright expanse of fresh white snow on the ground from last night's gentle snowfall, as Cole and Brooke took an afternoon ride around Lake Ninjago on a cutter pulled by Rocky, Cole's smoky black gelding.

After attending the Christmas Day church service, Cole had suggested that they go for a ride on the cutter, then head to the Garmadon Ranch bunkhouse for some hot cocoa and open their Christmas gifts to each other before heading to the ranch's main house for a Christmas supper tonight.

Mr. Wu was hosting his annual holiday supper for his employees and close friends tonight, and Cole had invited Brooke to accompany him as his guest. Since her boss Rufus had closed the McAllister Saloon for the day, she was free to attend.

As the couple rode along, they could see that Lake Ninjago was starting to ice over, but because it was early winter, only the portion immediately adjacent to the shoreline was frozen. The geese who stayed around all winter happily continued to swim in the center, honking every so often.

The day was cold, but not too bad while the sun shone from the cloudless sky. Brooke, however, used the low temperature as an excuse to huddle as close as she could to the cowboy with the black kerchief for warmth. Cole did not mind her close proximity at all.

"Looks like no one else thought of going for a ride today," Brooke observed. "I don't see any other cutter tracks."

Smirking, Cole turned to look at her. "Then no one can see me do this," he said as he stole a quick kiss.

"Cole! You're such a slink!" Brooke laughingly protested.

"So you're calling me a sneaky fellow, just 'cause I stole one of these?" he said just before he stole another kiss.

"Cole!" She playfully punched him in his muscular arm.

"Ow!" he exclaimed, smiling as he feigned pain. "It's Christmas Day! You're supposed to be nice to me."

"What's the matter? Can't take a slogging?" she teased.

"No, I'm sappy," he said with self-deprecating humor.

Then he steered the conversation in a different direction. "Let's stop at the pier and look out for a while before we head to the ranch," he suggested.

Brooke agreed, so in a few minutes they reached the pier of Lake Ninjago. Cole guided Rocky to a stop, then he exited the cutter and walked around to the other side to help Brooke step out.

They walked to the beginning of the pier, the part where the first few wooden planks still straddled the shore and a person could sit with their legs over the side and their feet could still touch ground before the beach sloped into the water. The lake curved around to the west at this point on the shoreline, so the couple were able to seat themselves on this south-facing spot of the pier and still look out over the water. In silence, they watched the geese alternately swim and fly in the peaceful setting.

Cole put his arm around his girl, partly to keep her warm, partly to warm himself. She nestled in his shoulder. The vapor of their breaths punctuated the clear air as they soaked in the rays of the winter sunshine.

After a few minutes, he broke the silence. "Brooke?"

"Yes?" she responded lazily, still lost in her thoughts as she continued to look out over the lake.

"I have something to tell you," he announced somewhat mischievously.

She looked at him, one eyebrow raised. "And what would that be?"

"Your family is waiting for us at the main house of Garmadon Ranch."

Brooke frowned. "Oh, Cole, this is such a nice Christmas afternoon. Don't spoil it with a joke about that."

"I'm not joking. They arrived yesterday and they'll be here for a week."

"Cole!" she hissed. She was starting to get upset with him for toying with her emotions. It bothered her that she would be spending yet another Christmas away from her family.

At least this year she was able to console herself with the knowledge that they were going to come in a few months for a visit. She just needed to send them a few more dollars from a few more paychecks. And Cole, true to his word, was putting aside funds of his own, keeping her apprised of the accumulating amount. He said he would turn the money over to her in the spring so that she could send it to her mama and daddy, so they in turn could buy the train tickets from Ogacich to Sasnak City, and the stagecoach tickets from Sasnak City to Ninjago Town.

Cole was her hero for being so generous, but she couldn't understand why right now he kept pulling a donkey tail.

"I'm serious about your family being at the ranch, Brooke," he continued to insist. "Cecelia and Felicity are staying with Jay and Nya. Edith and Gilda are staying with Kai and Sam. Little Holly is staying at the main house with your mama and daddy. And at the bunkhouse, Zane and I are hosting Tucker, Stewart, and Reed."

Brooke was speechless as she realized Cole was indeed serious.

Speechless that he had remembered the names of all eight of her brothers and sisters.

Speechless that he had found accommodations for such a large group.

Speechless that he could afford to do such an extremely thoughtful gesture months ahead of schedule.

Cole grinned at the shocked expression on her face.

"Cole!" Brooke exclaimed, tears of joy welling up in her hazel eyes. "Where did you get the money to do all this so soon?"

He chuckled. "Saved a lot. Gave harmonica lessons. Won a lot of poker games - you could say that the Double S Ranch boys paid for three or four of your siblings all by themselves!"

Brooke leaned in to hug him tightly. "Oh, Cole, thank you!" she sobbed into his neck, unable to hold back the tears.

"Oh, Brooke, don't cry," the cowboy urged her, inhaling her wonderful vanilla scent as he held her tight. "There's something else I need to tell you."


	7. A Christmas to Remember

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hi! First thing I want to do is thank everyone for reading my recent short story** _**All I Want for Christmas: Cole's Dream**_ **. I published the last chapter yesterday (Dec 20), but my story didn't move to the top of the story queue, and I'm guessing that is because you have to wait at least 24 hours in between publishing chapters for it to move, which I did not do. So anyway, that story is complete now, so please look for it down in the story queue, showing up as having been updated Dec 19. Hope you enjoy it!**

 **Now, on to the chapter you are about to read here. As you probably know, there are several different opinions on what Cole's last name is. Measuremesky and I were in the "Brookstone" camp. However, when we gave his love interest the name of Brooke, we forgot to consider what her name would end up being if they got married. Since Brooke Brookstone sounded odd to me, in this story I gave Cole the last name of Hence, another last name that people ascribe to him.**

 **I hope you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Merry Christmas, everyone!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7 - A Christmas to Remember**

Noting the change in the tone of Cole's voice from playful to serious, Brooke sat upright again, wiping her eyes with the back of her glove. "What do you need to tell me?" she sniffed.

"First, let me give you my kerchief," he said, reaching inside his winter slicker, into the pocket of his Sunday-best coat, "so you can compose yourself."

She smiled ruefully as she thanked him and accepted the black cloth to dab her eyes, remembering the first time he had ever offered his kerchief to her - the night of their first kiss.

After a minute and a few deep breaths, she regained control of her emotions.

"I'm sorry for blubbering," she apologized as she handed the kerchief back to him. "So, you said you needed to talk to me about something?"

Cole cleared his throat. "Yep. I do."

Without warning, he left the seat next to her on the pier and got down on one knee in the snow in front of her. His cheeks were rosy. Brooke could not tell if the cold temperature was the cause for that, or if it was the nervousness he was suddenly exhibiting. He took her gloved hands in his.

"Brooke," he began, his dark brown eyes gazing into her hazel ones, "there was a time when I doubted that a special girl would ever come into my life, and then I realized that my special girl was already in my life. You. A beautiful, smart, kind girl. A fun-loving girl. A girl who likes to punch me in the arm."

Brooke chuckled nervously. Her heart started to pound in her ears as she started to realize where he was going with this conversation.

He squeezed her gloved hands tighter. "You've been my girl for a few months now, Brooke, and every day my feelings for you have gotten stronger. So strong...that I want you to be my girl for the rest of my life."

Cole swallowed hard, his gaze into her hazel eyes more intent than ever.

"I love you, Brooke Dawson. Will you marry me?"

For Cole, time came to a standstill on the shore of Lake Ninjago. Even the geese seemed motionless and silent, as if they, too, were waiting for her reply.

Though it seemed like an eternity had passed, it was only a second later that Cole suddenly found himself laying on his back in the snow. Brooke was sprawled on top of him, her arms lovingly wrapped around his neck. She had accidentally knocked him over as she embraced him exuberantly, causing his hat to fly off and land a few feet away.

"I love you, too, Cole Hence!" she declared, looking down into his mesmerizing dark brown eyes. "I realized I loved you last summer, when Pastor Neuro had you and the other men who rescued Sam and Kai stand up in church to be recognized. That's when you became my hero!"

Tears began to stream down her face again. "And yes, I want to be your wife!"

"More tears?" Cole jokingly complained, but he did not mind. As she rested her cheek against his chest, struggling to calm herself down again, he gently stroked the back of her coat as he lay on his back and looked up into the brilliant blue sky, silently thanking God in the Heaven above it for sending the perfect woman to him.

Cole wished the moment could have lasted the rest of the afternoon, if not forever, but the snow he was laying on was starting to freeze his neck. And, besides, ...

"I forgot to do something very important!" he exclaimed, laughing at himself. "I need to give you the ring!"

Brooke started laughing, too, for she had also forgotten that an engagement ring was an integral part of a marriage proposal. She pushed herself off Cole. They helped each other up and brushed the snow off each other, with the cowboy needing a lot of snow brushed off his back.

Cole retrieved his cowboy hat and placed it back on his head. He directed the saloon girl to sit on the pier again while he repositioned himself on one knee in front of her.

He reached into another pocket of his Sunday-best coat and pulled out a red velvet box with a stylized gold letter K on the top - the symbol for Karlof Jewelers.

"Would the future Mrs. Hence do me the honor of wearing this ring?" Cole asked. He opened the box to reveal a round-cut emerald set in a gold ring, flanked by two small diamonds.

Brooke breathed in sharply. "It's beautiful!" she whispered.

Cole removed his gloves so he could take the ring out of the small box. After removing the glove from Brooke's left hand, he slipped the small piece of jewelry on her ring finger.

Brooke held her hand at different angles to admire the symbol of Cole's love for her. It warmed his heart to see her hazel eyes dance with excitement at his ring selection. He had tried to pick out something to reflect her bold style.

Her newly adorned hand reached out to cup his cheek.

"I love you, Cole," she murmured as she leaned forward to kiss him.

"I love you, too, Brooke," he replied before her lips met his. He loved getting close to her. That vanilla scent of hers never failed to tantalize him.

Though her fingers were icy on his cheek, her kiss was warm and soft.

Cole observed that the sun, which was shining overhead when they arrived at the pier, was now shining from a more westerly angle. He realized it was time to get going to Garmadon Ranch.

Cole hopped up from his kneeling position. "We're expected to be at the main house at five o'clock, and we can't be late or else your mama said she'd give me a slogging. Shall we go to the bunkhouse now to have some cocoa and open Christmas gifts before we go over there?" he asked her, grabbing her wrists to pull her up to stand in front of him.

"Sakes alive, Cole! After all the money you spent on me, you got me a separate Christmas gift, too?" Brooke exclaimed incredulously while putting her left-hand glove back on. Her gift to him, a set of black kerchiefs on which she had personally embroidered his initials and a design with white thread, was starting to seem to her to be inadequate for him.

He grinned as he escorted her back into the cutter. "Don't worry, it's nothing too fancy." He secretly hoped she would like it, though. It was a dressmaker form that he had bought from Miss Camille, the proprietor of Miss Camille's Dress Emporium. Brooke had told Cole that she had a dream of becoming a ladies' dress designer. Cole, in turn, had told this to Miss Camille one Sunday after church while asking her opinion on Christmas gift ideas for the willowy brunette. (He had Sam and Nya keep Brooke busy so she wouldn't see what he was doing.) Camille had suggested the dressmaker form, and she said she looked forward to seeing some of Brooke's creations when they were ready.

Back in the cutter, Cole and Brooke made their future plans as they traveled to Garmadon Ranch.

The cowboy told his new fiancée about the meeting he had with his boss, in which Cole had discussed with Mr. Wu his plan to propose to the saloon girl. Mr. Wu had told Cole that he wanted to build a cottage for the couple as his wedding present to them, just like he had built cottages for the Smiths and the Walkers. However, the cottage for the Hences had to wait to be built until the springtime, after the winter snow had melted.

Mr. Wu had also told Cole that he would be happy to host a simple wedding reception in which cake and punch would be served. And he would give Cole a whole week off with pay so that the couple could travel to Brooke's home city of Ogacich. The ranch owner would also buy their transportation tickets. Over in the United States, it was becoming fashionable for newly married couples to do some traveling right after the wedding. People were calling this kind of trip a "honeymoon."

These reception and travel offers by Mr. Wu were the monetary equivalent of what the ranch owner had spent on each of the other married cowboys when he hosted the big double wedding barbecue for the Walkers and the Smiths a few months ago.

So the couple had to decide when and where to get married.

If they decided to get married within the week, while Brooke's family was here in Ninjago Town, then her kinfolk would already be present for the nuptials. It was possible to plan a wedding in that short amount of time - Jay and Kai had married their women only one week after proposing to them. The problem with having the wedding right away was that the newlyweds would have to live separately in their current residences for three months until their cottage was ready.

Another option was to wait until springtime, and then travel to Ogacich to get married. No one would look askance at them traveling there as an unmarried couple, since they would be getting married anyway. But though Brooke loved her family, her sentimental ties to Ogacich itself were not quite strong enough for her to prefer to be married there over being married in Ninjago Town, a place she had grown to love in the three years she had lived here, where the air was fresh and the friendships were strong. And though Brooke didn't say this out loud to Cole, she did not want that slimy varmint, also known as her late aunt's husband, to be among the guests on one of the happiest days of her life. If the wedding were held in Ogacich, he'd have to be invited.

So the third option, which the couple decided was the best one, was to wait until the springtime, and then get married right here in Ninjago Town. Right after the wedding, the couple could travel to Ogacich to visit her family and former neighborhood and Brooke could introduce her new husband to friends and neighbors.

The couple made plans to speak with Pastor Neuro next Sunday about conducting their wedding ceremony in the first week of April.

"You know, we have another very important decision to make," Cole informed Brooke.

"What would that be?"

"The flavor of our wedding cake. Lemon or chocolate?"


	8. Thursday in Early May

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hope everyone had a great Christmas! Right now it's late on Sunday night where I live so I thought that since it's close enough to Monday, I'd go ahead and post the next chapter of this story. Happy 2016 to all!**

 **Princess Bunny - You're right; you can never go wrong with chocolate!**

 **FirstFandomFangirl - Don't walk away cackling evilly - you can stay and cackle evilly all you want! XP**

 **MMM - It's interesting that you mention the subject of Cole and Brooke becoming parents. Stay tuned for Chapter 16...**

 **lovesgod12 - Hope your area wasn't affected by the recent tornadoes!**

 **In this chapter, the focus now shifts ahead a few months to the season of spring and to the cowboy who wears a blue kerchief. The rumblings of war have begun...**

* * *

 **Chapter 8 - Thursday in Early May**

Nya Walker sat on the porch swing of her cottage on a lovely spring afternoon shortly before suppertime. Though she felt slightly nauseous, she was happily waiting for her husband Jay to arrive home so she could share some wonderful news she had learned when she traveled into Ninjago Town today.

Seated on the porch deck next to her was her seven-month-old canine companion named Flash, a black Australian Shepherd male dog with a white chest and feet and a copper nose. Flash was idly panting as he happily waited for Jay to arrive home.

While Nya waited, she looked around at the front yard of the cozy cottage and smiled. She thought about the day Jay had proposed marriage to her. He had been more nervous than a cat in a roomful of rockers as they had eaten their picnic supper on the bank of the Ninjago River, on that sandy area where it bent to the west. She could not figure out what was wrong with him.

She never would have guessed he was about to ask her to marry him. Only a few nights before that, as she had dressed up for that memorable supper party at the main house of Garmadon Ranch, she had complained to her friend Sam that she was so frustrated about Jay's slowness in popping the question. Heck, at that point, he had kissed Nya only once. After the supper party, Jay did do some sparking at the water pump - Nya smiled at the memory - but still, she never expected him to produce a ring just a few days later as they watched the sunset by the side of the river.

Just one week later after Jay proposed, Nya became his wife in the double wedding ceremony in which their friends Sam and Kai got hitched as well. _When Jay wants to, he can move like lightning_ , she thought. And now they had been married for over eight months.

Nya's thoughts were interrupted by the galloping of a horse's hooves. Jay was arriving home. She stood up and walked down the two steps of the porch to welcome him. Flash jumped up and ran off the porch to welcome his master home with barks.

"Howdy, Flash, I'm glad to see you, too!" Jay grinned as he dismounted Wisp, his bay gelding. He still had to bring the horse to the stable and settle it for the night, but he wanted to greet his wife first.

He gave Flash a pat on the head and turned toward his woman.

"Well, howdy, my little cherry blossom," he said, sliding his arms around Nya's waist. "It's nice to see your pretty face waiting for me when I get home."

"You're such a sweet talker, Jay!" Nya chuckled. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "And I like it!" she murmured as her lips touched his for a moment.

"Come sit on the swing for a few minutes!" she urged him.

As she took his hand and led him to the porch, he asked her, "So how was your trip into town today? Was there any of that Purple talk?"

"Yes," Nya replied, rolling her eyes. "Sure, the Purples are entitled to their opinion, but if the newspaper would stop constantly printing what they say, and if people would stop talking about them, then they wouldn't feel so powerful. As it is, they're now threatening violence. The Purples in Snake Territory say they're going to cross over the border into Ninjago and take over Jamanakai Village in the name of that scalawag who claims to be the great-great-grandson of the last king."

She sighed as she sat down on the porch swing. "Maybe I'm just extra sensitive, 'cause you know Jamanakai Village isn't all that far from Ignacia." Ignacia was Nya's home town.

"I wouldn't worry. I'd say the Purples are just blowing smoke," Jay replied as he settled next to Nya on the swing and put his arm around her. "And it can get pretty dull around here, so when the Ninjago Town Chronicle editor doesn't have anything more interesting to report, he has to find something to print to fill up the space." Jay had to admit, however, that he himself was not totally convinced of what he was saying. He mainly wanted to allay Nya's fears.

As they began to swing, Flash sprawled out on the porch deck next to them and went to sleep.

"So what else happened in town today?" Jay asked.

"I talked to Doc Julien today. He said he had an interesting discussion with the mayor. It seems the mayor, who's also the chairman of the Ninjago Town civic committee, received a huge donation for a new hospital from an anonymous donor, on the condition that Doc would be asked to be the hospital administrator."

"How huge is a huge donation?"

"About $200,000."

Jay gave a low whistle. "Whoa! Not many folks around here have that much money to spare. The ranch owners would, I suppose, and maybe also Misako Garmadon - wait, I mean Misako Julien - after she sold Garmadon Ranch years ago to Mr. Wu. Maybe she wanted to help Doc realize a dream of his. Otherwise, I'd reckon it would be Sam, if Morro hadn't stolen her money last year."

"I'd reckon that, too. Poor Sam. Her money is all tied up in the court system." Nya frowned at the memory of the injustice her friend endured last summer.

"So did Doc say he'd accept the administrator positionl?" Jay asked.

Nya shook her head. "He wants to think about it a little more."

"How did you happen to run into Doc Julien anyway? Seems like he's always out and about around these parts, tending to some sickness or injury."

"Well," Nya began slowly, "He keeps office hours on Thursday mornings, so I stopped by his office today, 'cause I haven't been feeling too well lately..."

"Oh, Nya, I didn't know that! Why didn't you tell me?" Jay chided her while he squeezed her shoulders.

"But I found out why I haven't felt well," Nya replied.

Gazing into his soft blue eyes, she said, "Because we're going to have a baby!"

Jay's jaw dropped. "Wh-wha-what?"

Nya grinned. "In late November or early December."

With his free arm, Jay grabbed Nya's hand, his blue eyes wide as saucers. "We're actually gonna have our own little shaver?"

Nya nodded, still grinning.

Excited at the news, Jay hollered "Yee haw!" and threw his cowboy hat into the front yard. Flash jumped up and barked energetically at the commotion.

"You're gonna be a mama, and I'm gonna be a DADDY!" the cowboy exclaimed, hugging his wife.

He looked down at the noisy canine. "And Flash, you're gonna be a...wait, not a daddy...uh, not a brother...uh, well, I guess you'll be a dog!"

Then he looked over at his gelding standing in the front yard.

"Did you hear that, Wisp? We're having a baby, and you're gonna be a horse!"

Nya laughed at her husband's giddiness at the news.

"So when do you want to tell everyone the news?" Jay asked.

Nya thought. "Well, it's not peak blueberry season just yet, but there might be enough ripe ones on the bushes to make a pie or two. Maybe we could invite everyone over for pie and coffee on Saturday after supper and tell them then?"

"Sounds pretty ambitious," Jay frowned. "Sure you're feeling well enough to do all that picking and baking?"

His wife nodded and smiled. "I'm sure!"

But she stopped smiling when she smelled the aroma of a slightly burnt supper coming out of the house.

"Sakes alive! I forgot about our supper!" she exclaimed.

"I'll get it!" Jay hollered, jumping up from the porch swing and running into the house ahead of her. "I'll take care of supper! You take care of the little shaver!"


	9. Saturday in Early May

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy New Year! Are you keeping your resolutions so far? Too bad this website is not having a good year so far in terms of the review posting functionality. Hopefully the problem will be corrected soon, and we can once again read what we and other reviewers post on the Reviews page of a story.**

 **A big thank-you to the commenters on my last chapter: Princess Bunny, FirstFandomFangirl, NinjagoMasterOfTheForce, MMM, and Naruby7!**

 **And since I have not previously done so, I also wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge the commenters on the final two chapters of my first fanfic** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy.**_ **I received a kind comment on Chapter 41 last week from a guest named KaitheHotHead1, so I wish to publicly thank this commenter along with the other commenters:** **FirstFandomFangirl, Kai's Girlfriend, kairocksrainbow, lovesgod12, MMM, Naruby7, Princess Bunny, and Yuki.**

 **Now in the chapter that you are about to read below, the Walkers are going to tell their friends that a little shaver (a term used to affectionately describe a small child** **as a little chip or shaving off the original, i.e. their parents)** **is on the way. There will also be a bit of discussion about the subject of a baby Smith...and about the possibility of war...**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 - Saturday in Early May**

The weather on Saturday evening turned out to be quite pleasant, which meant that the guests were able to enjoy their refreshments outdoors on a picnic table on the front lawn of the cottage of Jay and Nya Walker.

In attendance at the gathering were the residents of Garmadon Ranch: Mr. Wu, the ranch owner; Miss Gayle, the housekeeper who lived in the main house; Bo, the gardener who lived near the property line separating the Garmadon Ranch and Double S Ranch; and Jay's fellow ranch hands - Zane, Kai, and Cole, along with Kai's wife, Sam, and Cole's new bride, Brooke. Cole and Brooke had gotten hitched just a month ago.

A canine resident of the ranch, Blaze, was also in attendance to visit Flash, his brother. The two animals were born nearly eight months ago from the same litter of Australian Shepherd dogs. Blaze, a companion to his mistress Sam, was red with a white chest and two white front legs.

Flash and Blaze entertained themselves during the evening by going around to each human, each carrying a stick found on the ground. If they were fortunate, which they were a majority of the time, the human would play a short game of fetch.

Jay and Nya would have liked to invite their friends who lived beyond the boundaries of Garmadon Ranch, but given how Nya was feeling, Jay felt that they should limit the guest list to a small gathering so that she could conserve her energy.

Before the church service tomorrow, they would inform Pastor Neuro of their happy news, so that when it came time in the service to make announcements of general interest to the church members, the pastor could tell the whole congregation all at once.

Tonight, Nya's beautiful blueberry pies were proudly displayed in the center of the picnic table. She had found enough ripe berries to make three of the sweet desserts. The lattice crusts looked perfect, just like the crusts on the pies she made for the memorable supper party last summer.

Mrs. Walker was showered with compliments on her culinary creations.

"She be taught by a good baker," Miss Gayle declared. She was the supervisor of the pie baking for last summer's supper party and had to re-teach Nya some baking skills that the raven-haired beauty had forgotten from her childhood.

"But what happened with me then?" Sam joked, making everyone laugh. The cherry pies she had made for that same supper party had been described as looking "interesting" by Nya and having "character" by Kai - not exactly ringing endorsements of their appearance.

"Both of ye be bakin' good-tastin' pies. Taste is what be matterin' most," Miss Gayle said with a smile.

Cole nodded. "I agree with that!" He remembered saying that to Sam and Kai at the supper party.

From the front porch, Jay tapped a spoon on an unused pie tin. "Hey, pardners!" he called out to get everyone to look at him. "Before we start dipping our eatin' irons into these splendiferous pies, Nya and I want to make an announcement."

Nya came up on the front porch and stood next to Jay. He put his arm around her waist.

"In late November or maybe early December, Nya and I are going to be the proud mama and daddy of a new little shaver," he announced with a wide grin.

Sam's heart leaped at the wonderful news for her friends. She jumped up from her seat to be the first one to congratulate and hug the raven-haired beauty and her husband who wore a blue kerchief. "I'm so happy for you both!" she exclaimed.

She then stepped to the side to allow the other guests to express their sentiments of happiness to the expectant parents.

Sam felt much joy for Nya and Jay, but she had to admit she felt a tiny twinge of envy. She wanted to have a baby, too. Hosting two of Brooke's cute younger sisters for a week last winter was so much fun and fueled her desire to become a mother. She was starting to wonder if the fact that she and Kai had not yet conceived a child in over eight months of marriage signified proof of a medical issue. Perhaps if no baby was on the way by the autumn, she would speak to Doc Julien about it.

Sam did not realize she was standing quietly off to the side with a pensive look on her face until Kai sidled up to her and put his arm around her waist.

She hoped that he wouldn't guess that she was thinking about their own future child, but he did.

"Don't worry, Sam," he assured her quietly, giving her a squeeze as they watched the others. "We'll have our turn soon."

"Oh, I know we will," she replied, flustered that her thoughts had been so transparent. She quickly squeezed him back to let him know she really was not unhappy about anything. Kai was such a good husband and she couldn't ask for a better man. With him, and their dog Blaze, she felt blessed.

"I have an idea," he whispered into her ear. "Let's work on it tonight when we get home!"

He began to laugh while he watched her blush. He knew she hoped no one else heard his brash comment.

Then she laughed as she playfully jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow, so he knew he wasn't in trouble with her.

* * *

The first two blueberry pies were gone, with the crumbs going to the canines. The men were sitting around the picnic table working on devouring the third pie as they conversed about the Purples. The ladies went into the cottage to help Nya keep things tidy, so she wouldn't have as much cleaning to do once the guests had left.

"Those boys," Nya said, rolling her eyes. "There they go, talking about the Purples just like everyone else in town and across Ninjago is doing. I wish people would stop talking about them. If the Purples get the gumption to actually take over Jamanakai Village like they're threatening to do, then our side will need to take back the village, which basically means we'll have a war. And I don't want a war to start, especially now that I'm not feeling too well!"

Brooke agreed. "I don't want a war to start, either. Cole and I just got hitched barely a month ago, after waiting for three months. I don't want to be separated from him again so soon!"

"And if our boys go off to war, how will Mr. Wu manage the ranch?" Sam wondered.

Miss Gayle remained uncharacteristically silent. The lassies' concerns were all valid, but they seemed to be forgetting a very big problem with wars.

People get killed.

* * *

For a while, the men forgot they were at a party and instead had a serious discussion.

"So, boys," Mr. Wu began, "Seems like our side is being called the Yellow side, since Yellow is the opposite color of Purple. Can't say I'm fond of being called yellow, but - by gum! - I sure stand for anything opposite of what the Purples believe!"

He took a sip of tea and turned to the gardener. "So Bo, I'm not gonna ask you this question, 'cause I doubt they'd take you due to your bad ear."

The ranch owner turned to the cowboys. "But I need to ask you boys...If war does break out, are you joining the Yellow Army?"

"Definitely!" Zane announced.

"You bet!" Cole chimed in.

"For sure!" Kai declared.

"I'm in!" Jay exclaimed.

Mr. Wu took another sip of tea. He had another question which he would have liked to ask all four of them, but Zane had not yet found a special girl, and he had heard privately that Sam's attempt to match him with one of her old friends had failed because the friend had already married someone overseas.

"I applaud your patriotism, boys. But I have another question for you three with wives. Shouldn't you ask them how they feel about you joining before you actually sign up?"

Kai, Jay, and Cole looked a little sheepish.

"Sure," Jay said slowly. "I reckon it's just that we've figured that the Purples are just a bunch of locos..."

"...and if they cross into Ninjago, the Yellow Army would whup 'em right quick..." Cole added.

"...and we'd be back home before the end of strawberry season!" Kai finished.

"Well, just be sure to talk to your women first," Mr. Wu admonished them. "But if you four have plans to join the army, then I'll need to make some alternate plans for tending the cattle. Bo, you might have to put down your hoe and be a cowboy for a little while."

"Whatever you want, boss," Bo concurred.

Mr. Wu drank the last sip of tea from his cup and looked over at the front porch, where the ladies were occupying the porch swing and the front stoop. They were giving unhappy looks to the men seated in the front yard around the picnic table.

"You got your harmonica, Cole?" he asked.

"Always do," the black-haired cowboy responded, patting the pocket in which he kept the small instrument.

"How about playing some tunes, and let's dance with the ladies. Zane, why don't you dance with Brooke," Mr. Wu suggested. He realized they were neglecting the women, and he never wanted to get on a lady's bad side.

"Ladies," he called. "Come join us in the front yard here for some dancing. I need to work off all that delicious pie I just ate!"

Flash and Blaze barked happily, wanting to participate in the fun, too.


	10. Monday in Late May

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Monday! I'm happy that the review posting functionality is fixed now.**

 **A big thank-you to Princess Bunny and MMM for commenting on the last chapter!**

 **I just found out today that Vincent Tong, the voice actor who plays Kai, also performs the voice of Jestro in the new LEGO Nexo Knights series, which can be seen on Cartoon Network this week in the USA.**

 **And Mr. Tong posted a cute comment on the Kai tribute video on the Stephanie Brown YouTube channel, to which I subscribe. I thought that was pretty awesome of him to do that!**

 **In this chapter, the Garmadon Ranch women will receive some news...**

* * *

 **Chapter 10 - Monday in Late May**

Four ladies sat at a picnic table outside the back door of the main house of Garmadon Ranch on a sunny Monday in late May. Miss Gayle, Nya, Sam, and Brooke were resting and enjoying a satisfying midday meal after a morning of washing and hanging up laundry on the clothesline.

It was a regular occurrence now for the wives to ride their horses from their cottages in different parts of Garmadon Ranch on Mondays and meet up at the main house. At this point, Sam was a decent enough rider, and even Brooke, the newest resident of the ranch, was able to ride well enough to make the trip. As the ladies did their laundry together in the morning and sharpened their homemaking skills in the afternoon by working on various projects, they enjoyed the camaraderie of the other ranch women.

Blaze and Flash, the Australian Shepherd dogs who had accompanied their mistresses Sam and Nya, were resting in the shade of an oak tree after a morning of frolicking in the sun.

Sam smiled at her canine friend, who was sprawled out on the grass, and turned to Brooke. "How is the dog search going for you and Cole?"

Cole had liked how Kai and Jay had acquired dogs to be protectors and companions of their wives, especially on those days when Sam and Nya were homemaking in solitude at their respective cottages. Cole wanted to get a dog as a companion for his new bride Brooke, but the man from whom Kai and Jay had bought their puppies had moved out of the area, so Cole was looking for someone else from whom he could buy an Australian Shepherd.

"Cole might have a lead on a puppy for sale," Brooke replied. "Rusty said his sister's husband's friend in Ouroborus has an Australian Shepherd who just had a litter of pups. He's coming to Ninjago Town at the end of July and he's planning to bring the puppies with him to sell." Rusty was a ranch hand on the Double S Ranch who the girls knew from their saloon days.

"If Flash and Blaze be wantin' some food, I could prepare a plate," Miss Gayle asked Nya and Sam, both of whom agreed to the idea and expressed appreciation to her for the gesture.

As Miss Gayle assembled morsels for the dogs, she looked over at Nya's empty plate. "Happy to see ye be eatin' for two now, lassie."

Nya smiled. "My appetite's coming back. I'd heard the feeling of nausea is strongest in the first trimester, and it definitely was strong for me. So I'm glad to be in the second trimester now!"

Miss Gayle took care of feeding the dogs while the other ladies cleared the picnic table of the food in the serving bowls and the dirty plates, taking the items into the house. They came back out with a platter of pound cake slices, a bowl of freshly cut strawberries, and a pitcher of lemonade, as well as fresh plates, utensils, and glasses. They were going to enjoy a small treat before they began their afternoon homemaking lesson.

For this afternoon's lesson, the younger ladies were going to get their first chance to use the new contraption that Mr. Wu had purchased at Miss Gayle's request. It was a sewing machine. The short, plump housekeeper had already become familiar enough with it to be able to show the cowboys' wives how to use it, and today they were going to begin making simple curtains for their cottages.

As the ladies set out their pre-lesson refreshments on the picnic table, shouts of men and the pounding of galloping horses' hooves could be heard in the distance. The dogs woke up and started barking.

Accompanied by the noisy furry companions, the women hurried around to the front of the main house, where the noise seemed to be coming from. They could see three riders heading up the stone driveway - Kai, Jay, and Cole.

"Yerra! The lads!" Miss Gayle exclaimed.

The women looked at each other and became alarmed. Why in the world were they heading to the main house so quickly, and at this time of day? Was Zane hurt? Or Mr. Wu? The ranch owner had gone to Ninjago Town this morning and had not yet returned.

The cowboys slowed down the pace of the horses as they arrived at the house and spotted the four females. The men looked excited, so the women's fears about Zane and Mr. Wu appeared to be unfounded.

"Howdy, ladies," they called out as they tipped their hats.

"Mind if we set a spell?" Jay asked as they slowed down their horses down to a leisurely walk.

"Sure, come and set, lads. Failte," Miss Gayle answered, welcoming them using the vocabulary of the faraway land of her birth. "But what be causin' ye to tear up the trail so?" she asked as she and the younger ladies walked with the newly arrived cowboys and horses around to the back of the house where the women had just come from. The dogs happily trotted alongside them.

"We knew we'd find you ladies here, so we came here 'cause we've got some news for you," Kai said as the men dismounted their geldings, loosely tying them to the hitching post before pairing up with their wives as they all made their way toward the picnic table.

"And it looks like we got here just in time for dessert!" Cole observed as he spotted the refreshments. "How did you know that pound cake topped with the first fresh strawberries of the season is my favorite?" he joked, rubbing his stomach.

Everyone chuckled. Brooke playfully punched his arm. "Any cake is your favorite, Cole!" she laughingly protested.

"Set, lads, and let me be fetchin' more plates and the like," Miss Gayle urged the men. The housekeeper disappeared into the house while the younger ladies began to fill the plates and glasses already present at the picnic table.

A minute later, Miss Gayle returned from the kitchen with the extra supplies, and the younger ladies began to fill those, too, and pass them around. As Miss Gayle sat down at the table, she asked, "So, lads, what news is it that ye be burstin' to tell?"

"We Yellows finally get our chance to give those Purples a whaling!" Jay exclaimed. "The war has begun!"


	11. The War Has Begun

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

 **Happy Monday! In my part of the USA, it's a very cold day, indeed!**

 **Does anyone watch the cartoon called Supernoobs, which can be seen on the Cartoon Network in the USA? I never would have guessed that Michael Adamthwaite, who voices Jay, is the same voice actor who does the Supernoob blue alien! Two other Ninjago voice actors also have roles.**

 **A big "Howdy!" goes to my soldier tale's followers, favers, and the commenters on the last chapter: lovesgod12, FirstFandomFangirl, NinjagoMasterOfTheForce, and MMM.**

 **Below, the ladies learn more about the war...**

* * *

 **Chapter 11 - The War Has Begun**

A chorus of "What?!" emanated from the ladies upon hearing of the start of the conflict.

"Yep, we're at war," Cole affirmed. "Two nights ago, the Purple Army crossed the southern border into Ninjago from Snake Territory and attacked Jamanakai Village. Eleven innocent citizens were killed by those slimy Purple varmints while trying to defend their homes and their town from being taken over."

"Now the Purple flag flies over that village, 'cause they said, 'This property is being claimed in the name of the rightful king of Ninjago,'" Jay said, quoting the Purples in a high-pitched, mocking voice.

Kai continued with more information. "Mr. Wu found out about all this when he was in town, so he came out to the range to tell us. The governor of Ninjago has issued a call for volunteers to join the Yellow Army. Captain Noonan is heading up a cavalry company of a hundred men, mostly made up of ranch hands from our county. We're going to join a regiment with nine other companies from western Ninjago."

"Ye lads be joinin' up with the Yellow Army? And not be talkin' to the lassies before ye be doin' it?" Miss Gayle scolded them. The housekeeper always had a jovial attitude and would pretend to be mad on occasion, but this time she really did sound upset. She felt protective of the younger women, and it sounded to her like the cowboys were about to enlist in the army without consulting with their wives.

The ranch hands seem to settle down from their exuberance, as they remembered that their women were also going to be affected.

"Don't worry, Miss Gayle," Kai assured her. "Sam and I talked about it recently" - he smiled at his wife for a moment - "and Jay and Cole said they discussed it with Nya and Brooke, too."

Sam smiled back at her husband in order to disguise her worry. She turned to the group. "Being from the eastern part of the United States, I don't have official Ninjago citizenship, but I do support the Yellows."

"Me, too," Brooke added. "I'm a United States citizen from Ogacich, but I also believe in the Yellow cause." She patted the hand of the black-haired cowboy sitting next to her.

Miss Gayle's face softened. "Well, I be glad of hearin' of discussion about it. I be supportin' the Yellows, too, though I never did become a citizen of Ninjago meself."

She noticed no one had touched their dessert yet. "The cake won't be eatin' itself, lads and lassies!" she said. The others got her hint and began to partake of the refreshments.

"You know, you still can become citizens, ladies," Jay pointed out before taking a sip of lemonade.

The non-native Ninjagoans looked at each other and smiled ruefully.

"When this Purple fiddle faddle is over, perhaps we can be doin' just that and then havin' a party to celebrate," Miss Gayle suggested. Sam and Brooke nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of Purple fiddle faddle," Kai spoke up after a bite of a strawberry, "For the time we're away dealing with this Purple nonsense, Mr. Wu told us to talk to you ladies about your living arrangements. He suggested you move here to the main house for the time we'd be gone, but that's up to each of you to choose." He looked at Sam. "I think you should accept his offer," he urged her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Where is Mr. Wu anyway?" Nya asked before eating another bite of cake. "And where's Zane?"

"They're at the bunkhouse. Zane's giving Mr. Wu an update on the cattle," Cole answered as he ate the last bite of pound cake on his plate. "He and Bo are going to take care of the herd while we whup some Purple - "

"Language, lad!" Miss Gayle warned him before he used a certain word in front of the ladies.

"...soldiers," Cole finished with a grin.

Sam set down her fork after finishing her dessert. "When do you leave?" she asked.

"Looks like it'll be the day after tomorrow," Kai replied. "Captain Noonan thinks he'll have his hundred men signed up right away - and I think so, too, since the Ninjago Town area's strongly Yellow - so he wants us all to leave together for Camp Goldland, halfway to Ouroborus."

Cole helped himself to more cake. "So there's a farewell parade planned for ten o'clock Wednesday morning, and we'll march straight out of town. At the camp, we'll meet up with the other companies in our regiment and get our uniforms," he added.

Sam frowned. _Gone in less than 48 hours,_ she thought.

"When will you come back?" Nya asked forlornly. She didn't feel like eating any more cake.

Jay took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "We'll be back by the end of August. The sign-up period is for 90 days. But we'll have 'em whupped by then."

Kai watched as Cole ate his second piece of pound cake topped with strawberries. "I hope that's your last piece of cake," he said to his fellow cowboy with the black kerchief, "because we need to get to town so Doc Julien can give us our medical examinations. I'll bet he's a very busy man today!"

"And then we have to go the recruiting office and actually sign the enlistment roll," Jay added.

Cole gulped the last bite of his dessert. "Done!" he announced, setting down his fork.

The cowboys stood up, preparing to depart. "We're going to the bunkhouse to get Zane, and then we'll head to town," Kai explained to the ladies. "We should be back by suppertime, I reckon."

Miss Gayle stood up as well. "If that be all the news, then you lads best be movin' along. There be plenty to do before sundown."

The cowboys' wives also stood up and escorted their men over to where the horses were tied.

Amid goodbye hugs and expressions of appreciation for the refreshments, the ranch hands mounted their horses and tipped their hats to the ladies in farewell as they rode away to the bunkhouse. The dogs barked.

The women waved back as they watched the cowboys disappear down the road, but no one felt like smiling. A pall had been cast upon the sunny afternoon. Making curtains for the cottages no longer seemed like a relevant nor enjoyable activity to engage in.

Miss Gayle felt bad for the younger women, whose men were about to leave them. But, being the practical lady that she was, she thought it would be best to direct their energies from moping around to being productive.

She looked at the picnic table. "Let's be takin' care of the dirty dishes, lassies, and then we can be preparin' and packin' food for the lads to take with them. Soldiers be tirin' of Army food right quick!"

She grabbed the nearly empty platter of pound cake and the pitcher of lemonade and took them into the house. Nya, Sam, and Brooke took care of gathering the other items to bring inside.

As Miss Gayle went into the kitchen and watched the ladies through the window, she thought about Nya's question to the cowboys: "When will you come back?"

It seemed to the housekeeper that the lads were downplaying the seriousness of this newly declared war, but she didn't want to say so to the lassies, particularly the one bearing the child.

She recalled when her man went off to war years ago, back when she still lived in her faraway homeland. She loved her Robert very much, but their plans to marry were delayed by a war that erupted between their country and the neighboring one.

Robert and his friends were so cocky, she remembered. They all thought they'd be back home by the time of apple harvest. Robert joked about the possibility of being hit by a falling apple as he exchanged wedding vows with her underneath their favorite tree.

But Robert never came back home.


	12. Wednesday in Late May

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **My sympathies to those of you in the eastern USA who were hit hard by the big winter storm this past weekend. I hope you will get shoveled out soon!**

 **Thanks to NinjagoMasterOfTheForce, MMM, lovesgod12, and Princess Bunny for your variety of sweet and humorous comments on the previous chapter of this tale!**

 **Get your handkerchiefs ready for the chapter below and the two chapters that will follow in upcoming weeks. The day has come for the Garmadon Ranch cowboys to depart for the war…**

* * *

 **Chapter 12 - Wednesday in Late May**

Ninjago Town was bustling at eight o'clock on this sunny Wednesday morning when Kai and Sam arrived, riding on the back of Flame, Kai's chestnut gelding. Flame also carried Kai's war bag and rifle.

The town atmosphere was festive, in anticipation of the soldiers' farewell parade that would be occurring in a few hours. Yellow bunting hung from the storefronts and other buildings all up and down Main Street, including the red brick bungalow on the corner of Main and First where Doc Julien practiced medicine on the lower level. About a dozen men stood in a line outside Doc's office, waiting to be examined in time to join the parade out of town.

In the street, a crowd of people, in which virtually everyone wore some sort of yellow accent, milled about. For those that hadn't thought to wear yellow, or for those who desired to adorn themselves with more of the bright color, little girls were walking around distributing yellow daffodils from baskets. On the steps of the bank, peppy tunes were being played by a small brass band.

This morning, the Garmadon Ranch cowboys rode separately into town. Zane rode on his gelding Shard, alongside the carriage in which Mr. Wu and Miss Gayle were traveling. The carriage was needed because even though each married cowboy's wife was traveling into town this morning with her man on her man's horse, the cowboys' horses were going off to war, too, so the ladies needed to ride in the carriage in order to get back home to the ranch later.

Kai and Sam spotted Rusty, their friend from the Double S Ranch, in front of the livery stable, so they rode over to him. Rusty was wearing a yellow hatband on his cowboy hat, just like Kai and all the other men who were heading to Camp Goldland that day.

"Howdy, Kai. Howdy, Sam," Rusty greeted them, tipping his hat to the lady. "I'm here directing all the enlisting men to tie up their horses in the field in back of the stable. This is where we're gonna meet before the parade and listen to Captain Noonan give a talk."

"We meet at a quarter past nine, right?" Kai asked, confirming the time he had heard yesterday.

Rusty nodded. "Yep. You can leave your gear with your animal."

Kai dismounted and then, taking hold of Sam's waist, lifted her off and set her on the ground. She patted Flame's nose in farewell, then - as Kai briefly disappeared behind the stable with the horse - she scolded herself for letting tears well up in her eyes. She wanted to be brave when she said her farewell to Kai, but if she was already getting emotional at saying goodbye to the horse, the chances of her being calm and composed when Kai departed were slim indeed. She blinked her eyes rapidly and managed to stop the tears from escaping to her cheeks before Kai returned, without the chestnut gelding.

Kai patted his pocket to ensure he still carried the enlistment slip he needed to present when he arrived at Camp Goldland. He then took his wife's hand, and they set out to meet up with the other Garmadon Ranch folks. They all had previously arranged to meet in front of the sheriff's office and spend a little time in town together before the parade.

When the couple arrived at the rendezvous spot, they found Cole and Brooke talking with Sheriff Lloyd on the sidewalk.

"'Morning!" Lloyd called in greeting. He tipped his hat to Sam and shook Kai's hand warmly. "And here's another soldier from Garmadon Ranch! With you four on the Yellow side, the Purples don't stand a chance!"

"Now if you were coming along, too, Lloyd, those Purples would be whupped by tomorrow!" Kai joked.

The sheriff smiled. "I thought about joining up, but I decided it'd be best if I kept my watch over Ninjago Town. After all, someone's gotta protect the pretty ladies while you're gone!" he teased.

Sam and Brooke chuckled as Cole and Kai made faces at the sheriff.

"Hey, Lloyd, get your own girl," Cole admonished the sheriff with a smile while wrapping an arm around Brooke's waist. "One of the new saloon girls that McAllister hired, Alison, seems to be settin' her cap for you, you know."

Lloyd blushed. He had also noticed how the girl with blue-green eyes and reddish blonde hair seemed to pay a lot of attention to him. She often shared with him the packages of rock candy she received from her family, made by a confectioner in her hometown.

"Yep, maybe by the time we get back, you and Alison will have an announcement to make," Kai added, enjoying the opportunity to fluster the young sheriff.

Jay and Nya walked up to the laughing group just then. "Announce what?" Jay asked.

"Howdy, Nya. Howdy, Jay," Lloyd greeted the Walkers in the same manner in which he had greeted the Smiths. Being anxious to change the subject, he answered, "Announce that...Zane is here! Howdy, Zane! With all the Garmadon Ranch cowboys here now, the Yellow Army has all the fighting power it needs, and the Purples had better be shaking in their boots!"

"Of course," Zane smiled. "A ratio of one Garmadon Ranch hand to 2500 Purples is no difficulty at all!"

Lloyd spent a few more minutes talking with the four cowboys from the ranch that bore the surname of his late father and himself. The ranch hands were like brothers to him, even though he had known them for just a few years. But though the sheriff wished he could talk with them further, his glances at the growing crowd in the street told him it was probably time to circulate around and make sure the atmosphere remained festive and orderly. Deputy Dareth was a fine assistant, but the badge of the sheriff commanded the highest respect.

"Well, boys, I reckon I'd best toddle along. Take care of yourselves," he said, vigorously shaking each cowboy's hand once more. "Bring back a Yellow victory!"

"We will!" the ranch hands assured him as he disappeared into the crowd.

The group looked at each other, not exactly sure of what to do next.

Zane checked his pocket watch. "Right now the time is a quarter past eight. Mr. Wu wanted to meet with us men on the steps of the tailor shop at nine o'clock. Miss Gayle'll be there, too. Mr. Wu told me to tell you that he thought it would be best if you finished saying goodbye to your ladies before then."

Sam felt a lump forming in her throat. In less than an hour, Kai would no longer be standing by her side.


	13. Farewells

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Thanks so much to the six commenters on the previous chapter: TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, lovesgod12, Naruby7, FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, and Princess Bunny. I was uplifted by the kind words and the funny lines you all posted!**

 **In the chapter after this one, the women will get to see their men one last time...from a distance, as the men ride in the parade. But this chapter, which contains a brief flashback to Chapters 6 and 7 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **, is the last opportunity for personal interaction. Get your tissues ready...**

* * *

 **Chapter 13 - Farewells**

"McAllister's is open," Jay said to the group. "We could get a quick cup of coffee. Tea for you, my cherry blossom," he suggested to the raven-haired beauty who wore his ring and carried his child in her womb. Tea was her preferred beverage.

Nya nodded. "That sounds good to me."

The others agreed, so they retraced their steps back up the noisy street to the saloon, which was located right next door to the livery stable and across the street from the bank. As they walked, various Ninjago Town citizens were able to identify the Garmadon Ranch hands as future soldiers, thanks to the yellow hatbands they wore, and they wished the men well. In turn, the Ranch folks were able to see who else was going to Camp Goldland, and likewise greeted them with good wishes.

Whenever Kai found himself on this section of the street by the saloon, he always remembered a certain night last summer, when Sam kissed him on the cheek for the first time. She had been living in a room on the second-floor balcony of the saloon, and he had come here to find the beautiful girl that he had met only hours earlier, so that he could warn her of the sinister plan that her boss, Morro, had in store for her. That night took him from the steps of the bank (where he hid himself behind a pillar and watched her leave her room) to the back of the saloon (where he grabbed her as she exited the outhouse) to the livery stable (where he told her of the sinister plan, out of earshot of Morro's right-hand man, Archer). Unfortunately, Archer had found them and threatened them, but even though Kai had no gun with him, he defended Sam with his fists. Though Kai had to be bailed out of the fight by the other cowboys, Sam had expressed her appreciation for Kai's gallantry with a sweet token of affection from her lips.

Now, as the group from Garmadon Ranch walked into the saloon on this sunny morning, Kai squeezed the hand of that same beautiful girl, who he now proudly called his wife. Sam did not know what Kai had just been thinking, but she squeezed his hand in return and looked up at him with a warm smile.

The saloon was busy, but they found an unoccupied table that could seat up to eight. Alison, the new saloon girl with a penchant for rock candy, quickly waited on them, and soon the beverages were served.

"If I don't talk to you again before you leave," Alison said to the men, "I wish you good luck in beating those Purples!" They acknowledged her good wishes for them as she left to attend to another table.

As the beverages were consumed, the men kept the conversation light, for their time of departure was nearing, and they detected a sense of unhappiness among the women.

Zane checked his pocket watch after a short while. "Well," he said, clearing his throat, "the time is about twenty-five minutes to nine."

The unspoken message of his statement was that it was time for goodbyes. The men reached into their pockets for money to leave on the table as payment for the beverages and a little extra something for Alison. Then the group walked back out into the bright sunshine of the morning and paused on the front porch of the saloon.

"So..." Jay began, trying to break the awkward silence. "Uh, where are you ladies going to stand while you watch the parade?"

The three wives looked at each other. "How about the hotel porch?" Brooke suggested. "It's on the shady side of the street, and there are places to sit, in case Nya gets tired." Her suggestion was agreeable to her friends.

"You ladies have your yellow handkerchiefs to wave at us?" Cole asked. On Monday afternoon, Brooke had come up with the idea to sew the brightly colored squares to wave at the cavalrymen as they paraded by. The ladies sewed as the cornbread they prepared was baking in the oven.

Sam reached into the pocket of her skirt and pulled hers out. "Here's mine," she said, waving it. Brooke and Nya waved theirs as well.

Sam looked down at her pocket and slowly put her handkerchief back as that darn lump in her throat came back. She looked up again, swallowed, and with all the cheeriness she could muster, said, "Well, good luck, boys!" She reached for Zane and hugged him tightly, and did the same with Jay and Cole. Nya and Brooke likewise dispensed hugs and good wishes to the men who were like brothers to their husbands.

Kai then watched Zane head down the street by himself to the tailor shop. He felt bad for the platinum-haired cowboy who had not yet found the love of a good woman.

 _Maybe he'll be able to meet a girl as we travel through new towns,_ he thought.

Kai, Cole, and Jay parted from the saloon in separate directions with their women in order to bid them a private farewell.

"Let's go over here," Kai said as he took Sam's hand and walked her into the alleyway on the side of Misako Julien's tea shop, where the noise of the street was a bit lessened and there was a bit more privacy.

When Kai reached a spot that was satisfactory to him, he stopped and turned to face Sam, taking hold of her free hand so that both of her soft smooth hands were now enveloped in his rough, calloused ones. Looking into her watery blue eyes, he forced himself to smile.

"Well," he swallowed, "I hope you have a good summer," he said, squeezing her hands.

Sam's throat was tight with emotion as she looked back at his soft brown eyes. She was afraid to speak. She felt like if she did, she'd start bawling.

From the pinched look on her face, Kai could tell what she was feeling. "Aw, don't cry, darlin'," he urged her. To get a better look at her, he pushed her sunbonnet back so that it now hung down her back, suspended by the ribbon around her neck. A loose blonde tendril fell over her forehead. He guided it behind her ear.

Sam couldn't hold in her tears anymore. She threw her arms around his waist. "I'll miss you!" she sobbed, burying her face in his chest.

"Sh, sh," he murmured, resting his cheek on her golden tresses as his own arms wrapped around her tightly. "I'll be back soon."

He breathed in her wonderful strawberry scent. How he would miss his woman while he was gone.

"You know something, Sam?" he softly said after a minute.

She lifted her head to look at him. Her eyes were bleary. "What?"

"Whenever I get lonely," he said, smiling as he cupped her chin, "I'll just close my eyes. And I'll remember last night."

She gazed into his twinkling brown eyes through her tears. A smile appeared on her face. Kai had accomplished his goal of putting it there.

"Oh, Kai," she pretended to scold him for his brashness. "Kiss me, cowboy!"

For several more minutes, the young couple held on to each other, their lips touching, each of them trying to burn the kisses into their memory, for it would be a long time before they got the chance to hold each other again.

Kai finally pulled away, reluctantly.

"I probably should go see Mr. Wu and Miss Gayle now to say goodbye before I have to report for duty." Kai was already starting to talk like a soldier.

Kai led Sam by the hand back to Main Street, where the sound level was noisier and the activity was greater. But that did not deter him from embracing her one more time.

"I love you, Sam!"

"I love you, too, Kai!"

"I'll see you soon," he assured her. One last brief kiss on the lips of his beloved wife, and he turned away quickly without looking at her. She stood there with tears running down her cheeks, watching him disappear into the crowd as he headed over to the tailor shop.

The day was warm and sunny, but with Kai no longer in her arms, the world felt dark and cold to Sam.


	14. The Soldiers Depart

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hello again! The positive response received from the previous chapter was heartwarming! Thanks to all the readers out there, and to lovesgod12, FirstFandomFangirl, Kairocksrainbow, Naruby7, and TitaniumMasterofAquaLightning for commenting!**

 **Today's chapter is a bit longer than my usual chapter of 1000-1500 words. I didn't plan it that way, but perhaps it will make up for the fact that I'm going to take a short break from writing this story, so the next installment will be in two Mondays from now.**

 **In this chapter, I gave Zane a new last name than the two I've usually seen given to him. He couldn't have the surname of Julien because in this story, he's not related to the town doctor. I've seen the surname of Roberts given to him, too, but I decided to go a different route. I believe I selected one that suits him well, and I hope you do, too.**

 **Relating to Zane, I included a brief flashback to Chapter 24 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **.**

 **This chapter introduces a few new OCs, mainly cowboys from the Double S Ranch who are friends with the Garmadon Ranch hands. They all are going to war together, so the OCs will appear in future chapters.**

 **So, without further ado…**

* * *

 **Chapter 14 - The Soldiers Depart**

Kai was the third ranch hand to arrive at the tailor shop. He saw that Zane was sitting on the porch railing. Cole was leaning against a porch pillar. Miss Gayle and Misako Julien sat on plain wooden chairs temporarily located to the porch from the inside of the shop, and Kai tipped his hat to the ladies.

Mr. Wu stood up straight in the center of them all, his arms folded across his chest. The older man with the weathered skin and the white beard was shorter than his male employees, but his piercing blue eyes and his tough-as-nails demeanor commanded respect. He nodded to Kai in acknowledgment of the brown-haired cowboy's arrival.

"Sam taking it hard?" Cole asked Kai as the new arrival stepped on to the tailor shop porch.

"Yep. Brooke, too?"

"Mmm-hmm."

Jay rushed up to them.

"Sorry for being a little late," he apologized, tipping his hat to the ladies. "Nya was pretty emotional. Fortunately Sam walked by and could take her to the hotel."

"That was good," Mr. Wu stated as he unfolded his arms and rested his hands on his hips. "Listen, boys, I want to tell you something before you vamoose. You all are the best ranch hands in the county, and I'm proud to call you my employees. And I'm proud of you for answering the call to defend the freedom of Ninjago, so that future generations" - he gestured toward future father Jay - "can enjoy the same high quality of life that we enjoy now."

"And there's one more thing that I'm proud of." The ranch owner cleared his throat. "Boys, I'm proud to consider you all to be my honorary sons."

"So do the Garmadon Ranch proud and whup some Purples!" he concluded with a grin.

Mr. Wu's admonition was greeted with enthusiastic responses from his honorary sons as each of them went up to their boss and shook his hand vigorously.

Miss Gayle and Mrs. Julien stood up to give out hugs.

"I'm so glad I got to see you all before you left," Mrs. Julien exclaimed. "I've been so busy helping Doc process all the last-minute medical examinations, and we didn't get finished until a few minutes ago!" she explained, speaking of the overloaded morning schedule of her physician husband, who she had just recently married. "Good luck to you all!"

"Adh mor," Miss Gayle told them, wishing them good luck in the language of the faraway land of her birth. "Get those sleeveens!"

 _And please come back home,_ she silently implored them.

The cowboys stepped off the porch of the tailor shop. One last wave of goodbye, and then they walked to the livery stable.

* * *

Sam and Nya found Brooke at the hotel. Brooke's eyes looked as bleary as Nya's. Sam had no doubt her own eyes looked bleary, too. She felt drained of energy and just wanted to take a nap. The carriage ride on the way back to Garmadon Ranch, however, would likely be the only opportunity to nap today. Once they returned to the the ranch, Mr. Wu and Sam, Nya, and Brooke were planning to switch from the carriage to the wagon and visit each ladies' cottage to pick up their essential belongings, for all three wives had decided that they would live at the main house while their husbands were away at war.

The three young women shared a bench on the hotel porch. It was not long before they were joined by other townsfolk who were looking for a place from which to watch the parade. Two women came and sat on another bench. Sam recognized them as Mrs. Metzger, the wife of the school master, and her daughter Elly, who was a bit younger than Lloyd.

Sam nodded in greeting, and they did likewise, but Sam did not feel like engaging in polite conversation just then, and it did not appear that they were inclined to do so, either, for it appeared that Mrs. Metzger was attempting to console Elly. It dawned on Sam that Elly's beau, Rowan Birk, who was a bank teller that Sam had met during one of her several bank dealings, was probably going to be riding off to war this morning. Sam wondered how Rowan - a thin, mild-mannered young man who seemed more comfortable around books than horses - was going to manage as a cavalryman, but Sam applauded his patriotism.

Miss Gayle and Mrs. Julien soon appeared on the porch. Sam and Brooke gave up their seats on the bench to the older women, as no more seating was to be had at that point.

"Mr. Wu will be collectin' us in the carriage right here after the parade," the housekeeper told the younger ladies.

Mrs. Julien noticed how forlorn the cowboys' wives looked. "I'm going over to my tea shop for a few minutes, but I'll be right back," she informed the others as she stood up and left the hotel porch. She had not opened her shop to the public today due to the necessity of assisting Doc Julien.

The physician's wife returned with a jar of peppermint sticks. "Ordinarily I dissolve these in tea when I want to create a peppermint flavored beverage," she explained as she passed them out, "but obviously they're good all by themselves, and I've learned they have a mood-boosting property to them, too." She also offered some to Elly Metzger and her mother, who gratefully accepted them, as did Mr. Metzger, who had arrived to join his family.

As the hour of ten o'clock approached, the atmosphere among the spectators became more energized. The parade would soon begin.

"The lads be lined up in alphabetical order," Miss Gayle said. "Mr. Wu be hearin' that from Captain Noonan. The captain said there be one hundred and eight enlistin' at Camp Goldland."

Faintly, but then more loudly, the sound of patriotic music could be heard coming down the street. The sitting spectators on the hotel porch stood up to take a look. The music was from the same band that had played on the steps of the bank. Now they were walking down the middle of the street, leading the parade.

Behind the band, two regular army soldiers, who were making the army their career, carried a banner which read, "Company C, 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment." The crowd cheered as the banner went past. The Garmadon Ranch ladies waved their yellow handkerchiefs.

Captain Noonan followed the banner, sitting tall in his saddle as he rode his magnificent steed. The gray-bearded captain, a military man all his life, cut a swell in his tailored black uniform and hat, both trimmed with yellow accents. He was flanked by his two lieutenants, who looked slightly younger. One carried the Yellow Army flag.

The officers were then followed by the enlistees, riding in a single-file line, all wearing yellow hatbands.

Some men were known by the ladies, some known only by their faces, some not recognized at all.

Sam knew that the men whose last names began with the letter B were passing by when Rowan Birk appeared.

"He looks so handsome!" Elly gushed. "The bank president gave him that horse," she added proudly.

"Rowan!' she shouted out when she saw him, wanting him to look at her one last time.

Unfortunately, Rowan, a novice horseman, was focused on maneuvering his animal and did not hear her, even when she shouted his name again. Sam noticed that Elly was becoming upset, for Rowan at this point was passing the hotel porch.

"Ladies!" Sam quickly spoke to get the attention of her companions. "On the count of three, let's shout Rowan's name. One...two...three!"

"Rowan!" at least a half-dozen women shouted, along with Mr. Metzger.

He heard, looked their way, and smiled at his sweetheart. Elly hugged Sam gratefully after he went by.

"That was actually kind of fun," Brooke admitted. "Let's do some more name shouting!"

So they shouted "Michael!" when their friend Michael Donlan from the Double S Ranch rode by.

And when the F names came along, they got their first opportunity to cheer for a Garmadon Ranch hand. Zane Falk's surname was derived from his ancestral country's word for a falcon and, amazingly, Zane himself possessed incredible eyesight, just like the bird for whom his family was named. His visual ability had made him a natural choice to serve as the lookout for the posse in the search for the kidnapped Kai and Sam last summer. It was to Zane's credit that Kai was able to walk above snakes today. Zane, with the help of his treasured binoculars, had spotted the dead horse in the desert which ultimately alerted the posse to the fact that Kai was in big trouble, and they were then able to save him in time.

"Zane!" the ladies shouted to the platinum-haired cowboy. He smiled and tipped his hat to them as he rode by on his gelding Shard. They waved their yellow squares of cloth at him.

"If we're on the Fs now," Brooke realized, "the Hs are coming soon!" Mrs. Hence stood on her toes and craned her neck to look down the street at the line of riders, trying to spot a familiar horse carrying a familiar rider.

Her search was soon rewarded. Cole and Rocky approached. It appeared Cole was looking for them in the crowd.

"Cole!" they shouted. He lifted his hat and waved it at them.

Brooke suddenly burst through the spectators and ran into the street to walk alongside him. Not being on horseback, she could not keep up the brisk pace for long, but she extended her hand up to him and he briefly held it, leaning down to chivalrously kiss the back of it before letting go and riding off while she slowly turned around and headed back to the hotel porch, wiping her eyes with her yellow handkerchief. Upon her return, Miss Gayle hugged her in consolation.

The line of men continued. Brooke managed to regain her composure.

"Rusty!" they shouted when their friend from the Double S Ranch, Rusty McKanna, went by.

"Robinson!" they shouted when another Double S Ranch friend, Robinson Murphy, passed the hotel.

Sam's heart began to beat faster. The Ss would soon be here.

Sure enough, a familiar chestnut gelding carrying a familiar brown-haired cowboy soon approached.

"Kai!" the ladies shouted. However, the shout of Mrs. Smith came out more like a sob.

Kai spotted them and tipped his hat. For a brief second, his eyes locked with Sam's.

To Sam, her husband looked so handsome and proud as he sat up straight on Flame and rode down Main Street, on the way out of Ninjago Town toward Camp Goldland. Then, all too quickly, he passed by and was gone. That darn lump reappeared in her throat, but she willed herself not to cry. Miss Gayle patted her on the shoulder.

Not far behind Kai was Jay Walker, riding atop Wisp.

"Jay!" they shouted to the remaining Garmadon Ranch hand, prompting him to grab his hat by the brim and sweep it in their direction with a flourish before replacing it on his head. His theatrical action put a smile on Nya's face through her tears.

Some regular army soldiers brought up the rear of the line, commandeering wagons full of supplies.

And then the parade was over.

The Garmadon Ranch ladies remained on the hotel porch while the other spectators, including the Metzgers, departed into the throngs of people that were filling the street in order to return to their daily duties in town, or perhaps return to their homes elsewhere in the county. Misako Julien bid the ladies goodbye before leaving to find her husband. Plenty of seating now was available for the ladies as they waited for Mr. Wu to bring the carriage around. Judging from the amount of people in the street, he would not be coming for quite a while.

He eventually did arrive. The carriage ride home was quiet. Nya napped on Sam's shoulder, but Sam could not fall asleep, though she wanted to.

After a light midday meal back at the ranch, Mr. Wu drove the ladies around to each of the cottages, collecting the two Australian Shepherd dogs and the horses and loading the steamer trunks into the wagon, later unloading them at the main house.

There were five bedrooms upstairs in the main house. Mr. Wu occupied the bedroom at the end of the hallway, farthest away from the stairway. The next two bedrooms, located across the hall from each other, were small in size and meant to accommodate a single occupant. The two remaining bedrooms flanked either side of the upstairs hallway at the point nearest the stairway. One of these bedrooms, which contained a double bed, was the room Nya stayed in for several days last summer before the wedding ceremony, and it was going to serve as her sleeping quarters once again. The fifth bedroom contained two twin beds and was going to be occupied by Brooke and Sam.

As Sam unpacked, she placed the framed wedding photograph of herself and Kai on the table next to her bed. An image of Kai would have to do until she could lay eyes on the real Kai once again.


	15. Letters from Soldiers

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Thanks to all the readers and to the following commenters on the previous chapter:**

 **FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, lovesgod12, Kairocksrainbow, and Naruby7**

 **You all are awesome!**

 **At this point, a few weeks have passed since the last chapter...**

* * *

 **Chapter 15 - Letters from Soldiers**

Over three weeks had passed since Company C of the 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment left Ninjago Town. The temperature on this particular morning in late June was already turning hot. Four ladies were starting to perspire as they tended to the garden next to the main house of Garmadon Ranch.

To be more accurate, three ladies were tending the garden, and one was sitting at the base of an oak tree, resting in the shade near the two panting Australian Shepherd dogs, Flash and Blaze. Brooke had awakened that morning feeling a bit poorly, and she had not felt like eating much of her breakfast. Miss Gayle had suggested she go back to her bed with a cup of weak tea and toast, but Brooke had insisted on participating in the activities with her companions, certain that her queasy condition would pass as the day wore on.

So far, however, it had not passed, but the wife of the black-haired cowboy was not ready to retire to her bed just yet.

They heard a horse approaching the house. Mr. Wu was returning from his ride to Ninjago Town, which he was now making daily in order to learn the latest war news. He looked tired. The responsibility of tending to the cattle with the help of only one assistant, in addition to the other responsibilities of running the ranch, was beginning to take a toll on him.

"Howdy, ladies!" the ranch owner called as he guided his steed toward them. "I brought back something from town that you'll be interested in."

Brooke rose from her seat at the base of the shady oak tree, while Sam, Nya, and Miss Gayle brushed dirt off their hands and skirts. They approached Mr. Wu as he dug into his saddlebag and pulled out several envelopes.

"Letters from your favorite soldiers!" he announced, holding up the packet of papers. He looked at each one to see who it belonged to. "Here's one for Brooke," he said as he handed it to her. "One for Nya. One for Sam. And four for Miss Gayle."

They had recently received a photograph from Camp Goldland featuring the four handsome Garmadon Ranch soldiers wearing their new uniforms, but they had not received individual letters until today.

"I hope they got the package we sent them!" Sam grinned. She silently wondered why Mr. Wu remained mounted on his horse.

Miss Gayle examined the envelopes he had handed to her. "These be addressed to ye, too, Mr. Wu."

"I know, but you can read them first," Mr. Wu replied. "I'm going back out to the range, so I'll be back at suppertime, and you ladies can tell me what your cowboys wrote."

The ladies bid him farewell as he urged along his horse and departed.

"Well, lassies, shall we be restin' now?" the housekeeper asked, glancing up at the sky and noting that the sun was directly above. "It be time to eat anyway."

"Let's eat, and then I want to read my letter afterward," Nya declared.

"I think I'll save my letter till later this afternoon," Sam announced.

"Oh, I can't wait. I want to read mine now," Brooke said. She hoped that a word from Cole would make her feel better.

"Go and sit then, lassie," Miss Gayle urged her. "We be takin' care of fixin' the meal." The housekeeper thought it would be best if Brooke refrained from preparing food, just in case the malady from which she was currently suffering was contagious. Miss Gayle, however, suspected that Brooke's ailment was due to a certain reason that was not related to diseases.

Brooke went back to sit under the oak tree once again, while Sam, Nya, and Miss Gayle washed up at the water pump and then went inside the house. Despite her queasiness, the new Mrs. Hence ripped open the envelope with enthusiasm and read the words her new husband had penned.

Cole's letter began with a light tone, thanking them for their package of supplies and food, but then he wrote that the 5th Cavalry was going to be among the first troops in the Yellow Army to be sent down to Jamanakai Village to confront the Purples, who were entrenching themselves in the hamlet they overtook nearly a month ago. Brooke felt even more sick than she did already when Cole ended his letter by saying that he loved her and that if something happened to him, he hoped she would marry again.

Brooke put the letter down on the ground, crawled around to the far side of the oak tree - the side away from the house - and vomited at the base of the tree.

Sam, who was setting out plates and drinking glasses on the picnic table, heard Brooke. She put down the objects and rushed over.

"You all right, Brooke?" the blonde asked the brunette, rubbing her back.

Brooke remained still on her hands and knees for a moment, making sure she was done, before she rose to her feet and started sobbing.

"I d-d-don't feel w-well. I n-n-need to lie d-down," she cried.

Sam put an arm around her and led her into the house. "All right, honey, I'll take you up to the room," she said, trying to comfort her friend. She took Brooke through the kitchen.

"Brooke wants to lie down," she informed Miss Gayle and Nya as they passed through. "She just vomited."

Miss Gayle reached for a loaf of bread in the food cupboard. "I be makin' her some toast, then, and tea."

"I'll start the kettle," Nya offered.

Brooke continued to sob, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as Sam escorted her up the stairway. "C-C-Cole wants m-me to m-m-marry again if he d-dies!"

The somber message alarmed Sam, but she kept her emotions to herself as she helped her roommate prepare to spend the rest of the day in bed.

Miss Gayle soon appeared at the door of their bedroom, carrying a tray.

"Here ye be, lassie," the housekeeper said as she deftly balanced the tray on one arm while using the other arm to remove two doilies from the tray and place them on the sick young woman's bedside table. She placed a plate of lightly toasted bread from the tray on one doily and a cup of hot light brown liquid on the other doily. "A little toast and tea'll be makin' ye feel better in no time," she added soothingly.

"Th-thank you, Miss G-Gayle," Brooke replied. At this point she was sitting up in her bed, propped up by pillows with the bedcovers over her lap.

Sam dabbed Brooke's forehead with a cloth dampened from the wash basin in their shared room. "Would you like some company while you eat?" she asked.

"N-no, thank y-you," the patient answered.

"All right, then. Get some rest now," Sam told her, patting her shoulder before she and Miss Gayle exited the room. Sam closed the door behind them and they remained silent until they returned to the kitchen.

When they entered the room, they found Nya sitting at the small table in the kitchen. Her letter from Jay was open and her face was white.


	16. Unrevealed News

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Monday! As I mentioned in the author's note of my other current story's update, which I posted earlier today, Wednesday March 2 marks the six-month anniversary of the posting of my first-ever fanfic chapter (from** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **). Time flies when you're having fun!**

 **And again, speaking of cowboys, I want to say "Howdy, pardners!" to all the readers of the story you are now reading, and also to Guest, lovesgod12, FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, and Princess Bunny for commenting on the previous chapter!**

 **In the 1800s, people wrote letters with lots of flowery prose, so Kai's letter to Sam will have some of that, in the chapter below…**

* * *

 **Chapter 16 - Unrevealed News**

"Yerra, lassie!" Miss Gayle exclaimed as she rushed to the side of the raven-haired beauty. "What be ailin' ye?"

"I decided to open the letter from Jay," Nya said, swallowing, "but Jay apparently mixed up his letters and put the letter to you and Mr. Wu in my envelope. He wrote you to say the odds of beating the Purples weren't good. They're more organized and have more firepower than anyone thought." Tears began to run down her cheeks as she shook the paper in her hand and said, "Jay wrote out his will!"

Sam gasped.

"Oh, lassie," Miss Gayle said, bending down to hug the seated Nya, "your man just be takin' care of the business he didn't do before he left. The soldiers burned the breeze out of town so fast, ye know."

Nya was not consoled. "Well, I think I need to rest in my room for a while," she announced, wiping her eyes as she stood up to leave. "Please excuse me."

Miss Gayle stood up and made way for her. "Will ye be wantin' some tea, Miss Nya?" she offered.

Nya declined. "No, thank you. But I'll be down for supper preparation." She quickly turned and left to go upstairs.

Miss Gayle sighed after the departure of Nya, then looked at Sam. "Come and sit, Miss Sam," she said, motioning Mrs. Smith to the small kitchen table. Miss Gayle sat across from her and took the young woman's hands in her own hands, roughened by years of hard work.

"I be lovin' all ye lassies like ye be my own, but out of the three of ye, I be dependin' on ye the most now," the housekeeper admitted, "with Miss Nya carryin' a child and bearin' it before Christmas, and now" - she leaned in closer to Sam and whispered - "I think Miss Brooke be carryin' a child, too, and bearin' it by late February. My guess is she and Cole be blessed just before he left."

Though Miss Gayle's whispered pronouncement had yet to be confirmed, woman intuition told Sam it was true.

She wished nothing but the absolute best for the mother-to-be and the new life in her womb, and for the father-to-be who had no idea at this moment that he was indeed a father-to-be.

However, the wife of the brown-haired cowboy couldn't stop tears of despair from welling up in her own eyes. She desperately wanted a child of her own, but she already knew that she and Kai had not been similarly blessed just before he left.

"Ye be lookin' not too well now, lass," Miss Gayle observed.

Sam blinked a few times to prevent the tears from overflowing on to her cheeks. "I'm just hungry," she fibbed as she gave Miss Gayle's hands a squeeze. However, it was not a total fib. "Why don't we fix ourselves something to eat?" she suggested, trying to distract herself from her despair. "I'll finish setting the picnic table," she said as she stood up to go outside to set places for herself and Miss Gayle, as well as to retrieve the extra dishware.

The temperature felt noticeably hotter than it did a little while ago. Once outside, Sam retrieved Brooke's letter from the base of the oak tree, where it had been abandoned, and put it in her skirt pocket next to the unopened letter from Kai. A few minutes ago, she was looking forward to reading the message from her cowboy. Now, she wasn't so sure she would like what he wrote.

* * *

At about four o'clock, with the garden weeded and watered and the strawberry patch culled of the latest ripe red fruit, Sam poured a glass of lemonade and sat at the picnic table by herself. With trepidation, she opened the letter to her from Kai.

 _Camp Goldland  
_ _16th June 18xx_ _  
_

 _My dearest Sam -_

 _Many thanks to you and the other Garmadon Ranch ladies for the package of towels and other linens, soap and other sundries, newspapers, and especially the playing cards and the dried apples. Upon hearing what Cole, Zane, Jay, and I received, some of our new acquaintances in Company C said they wished to get hitched to you ladies on the spot. They were disappointed that three of you were already wedded, but they vowed to walk the entire distance back to our ranch and bend down on one knee in front of Miss Gayle!_

 _The weather here has been hot and dry since we arrived here at Camp Goldland. You probably know by now - if you received the photograph of Jay, Zane, Cole, and me - that we were issued our uniforms. We enlisted men have been receiving instruction on military protocols. We conduct drills, with and without our horses._

 _For the rest of our time, we have been left to our own devices to fight boredom. One day, the men of Company C held a series of skill contests amongst ourselves. I hope you'll be pleased to know that your cowboy is the Company's lasso champion! Garmadon Ranch was well represented in the winner's circle that day. Zane won at target shooting, Jay won at horse jumping, and Cole won the wood chopping contest. I think almost every man in camp can thank him for the pole that holds up the tent they sleep in._

 _My sweet Sam, I wish I could end this letter on the same happy note it started with, but I can't. Captain Noonan advised us that, as of tomorrow, the 5th Ninjago Cavalry Regiment is advancing to Jamanakai Village because our unit is deemed ready enough for combat action, even though we have been here only two weeks. This news is ominous, he said, because it means that the Yellow Army leaders think that the Purples are stronger than anyone first believed, and therefore Yellow leaders are desperate to beat them before they grow even stronger, even if it means sending in troops not completely trained to fight._

 _In light of this news, the captain advised us to write letters to our loved ones tonight, in case we never get another chance. So if Heaven is the next place we see each other again, my cowgirl, know until then that my love for you is as endless as the brilliant blue sky over Garmadon Ranch._

 _I am, as I ever was and ever shall be, your loving husband,  
_ _Kai_

Through her tears, Sam noted the date of the letter, June 16.

 _Today is June 24. They left Camp Goldland a week ago_ , Sam thought. _Mr. Wu must know the latest news but he wasn't ready to tell us. That's why he skedaddled right after he brought the letters. What does he know?_


	17. Reconnaissance Near Jamanakai Village

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **I so appreciate all the readers, favers (two more just in the past week!), and followers of my soldier tale! And I appreciate the recent comments by FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, lovesgod12, TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, and Naruby7!**

 **At the beginning of the chapter below, Kai's dream is a composite of flashbacks to Chapters 39 and 25 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **...**

* * *

 **Chapter 17 - Reconnaissance Near Jamanakai Village  
** **(This chapter takes place two days before Chapters 15 & 16)**

" _Kiss me, cowboy!" Sam just said to me. She looks so beautiful in the light of the setting sun._

 _I gladly obey her command. Her strawberry scent makes me feel so drunk with love. What good thing did I do to deserve her acceptance of my marriage proposal just now? I want to stand here forever on Sunset Point, holding her in my arms and tasting her sweet kisses._

 _Wait...Now I'm sitting on the ground in the desert and she's sitting on Morro's horse, in the clutches of that scoundrel. Let her go, you dirty varmint!_

 _"How can you just leave him here to die?" she cries out to Morro. She's struggling hard to escape his grip but she can't._

 _"Oh, I forgot one thing," Morro says. He points his gun at me and pulls the trigger. I hear the sound of the gun go off._

 _"Kai!" Sam screams._

Kai, sitting in the saddle of his horse Flame, had once again finished replaying last night's dream in his head. He was currently part of a group of a dozen cavalrymen from Company C who were riding through the woods on a reconnaissance mission, being led by one of the two lieutenants of their company, Benjamin Pierce.

Kai frequently dreamed about the day he asked Sam to marry him. It was one of the happiest days of his life. But last night there had been a new ending to the dream - the time Morro left him stranded in the desert to die. That day was one of the worst in his life.

The cowboy shook his head to clear his mind and focus on the mission. It was their first mission since the Yellow Army had advanced and made camp at a point about ten miles away from Jamanakai Village. The reconnaissance group was approaching the small hamlet to discover information about the Purple Army which would be valuable to the Yellows, such as the number of enemy troops, or evidence that their troops would soon be on the move.

The dozen Yellows were not riding all together. Six of them - Lieutenant Pierce, Jay, Robinson Murphy of the Double S Ranch, and three men from Hibiscus Falls - were in the lead subgroup. They were about a quarter mile ahead of Zane, Kai, Cole, Rusty McKanna and Michael Donlan of the Double S Ranch, and the bank teller, Rowan Birk.

While the rest of Zane's subgroup were given the rank of Private when they enlisted, Zane was given the higher rank of Corporal. Captain Noonan had wanted a Garmadon Ranch man to hold one of the eight Corporal positions in the Company, in recognition of the sacrifice his friend Mr. Wu was making by supporting the decision of all his ranch hands to join the Yellow Army.

They had been riding a while, so when the trees around them seemed to be less densely packed together, they knew they were approaching the edge of the woods.

Lieutenant Pierce rode back down the woodsy path to meet the six of them. "Corporal Falk, take your men to the edge of the woods about a quarter mile east of here," he told Zane. "Then hide yourselves about three yards apart from each other at the woods' edge. The rest of us will be about a half mile west of your position."

"Yes, sir," Zane replied as the lieutenant rode away.

The six Yellows guided their horses and situated themselves as the lieutenant ordered. From their somewhat high vantage point, they could look down into a small grassy valley, beyond which stood the village about two miles away. In the valley, about a mile and a half away from them, it appeared that a company of Purple cavalrymen was conducting training exercises.

Zane, who occupied a middle spot among the six men, looked through his binoculars.

"It appears they are practicing their lassoing."

Kai was located to the right of Zane. "Let me see!" he begged, nudging Flame over to Zane's horse, Shard. Zane removed the glasses from around his neck, where they had been hanging via a leather strap, and held them out to Kai. Kai grabbed them out of Zane's grasp and took a look.

He chuckled. "They're throwing like greenhorns! They're even worse than you, Michael!" he quietly exclaimed, teasing his comrade located on his right as he handed the binoculars over to him.

Michael Donlan of the Double S Ranch was actually a skilled roper. In the years that Kai had known Michael, they had developed a friendly rivalry over who was better skilled. Michael had taken second place during the recent competition won by Kai back at Camp Goldland.

Michael took a look through the glasses and chuckled. "That Purple just missed his target completely." As he handed the binoculars back to Kai, he joked, "Reminds me of you, Kai, on that night we were celebrating your birthday. Remember when we all tried roping your horse in front of the saloon after drinking that beer Morro imported? It was from that city in the United States, Keewaumil. That beer sure got us all moppy!"

With the exception of Rowan, the others had been present that night and so they laughed quietly at the memory. Kai handed the binoculars back to Zane, who rehung them around his neck.

"Um, pardners," Rowan spoke up, using a term he was not yet used to saying. "Look over there." He pointed in an easterly direction.

Their eyes traced the edge of the woods, which curved toward the village until it bent back again out of their sight and they could see no more of the woods. But coming toward them around this bend in the woods, along the woods' edge, were four Purple soldiers on horseback, accompanying a horse-driven wagon carrying four more soldiers and tree-chopping tools, but no trees. They were apparently setting out on their task to collect lumber and were searching for a good grove of trees.

The Purples were getting close enough so that the Yellows in the woods could hear the sound of their voices.

Corporal Zane Falk, being the ranking officer, had to contemplate his group's options if the tree cutters came much closer.

If his group were to overpower the tree cutters using gunfire, the company of soldiers in the distance would hear the noise and be alerted to the Yellow presence.

And they really didn't have the option of overpowering the enemy with manual force and take them as prisoners. The six Yellows could not fight eight purples, and procuring the help of the rest of their reconnaissance group would take too long.

A third option would be to stay hidden, but they risked being discovered if the trees of their hiding place were the ones selected by the enemy to chop down.

So the best option was to quietly retreat in the direction of the Lieutenant and the other Yellows.

Zane realized his comrades were watching him expectantly, waiting for his order.

Just then, however, the tree cutters stopped about a hundred yards away from the hidden Yellows. It appeared that they had found a grove of trees that was satisfactory to them, for they were climbing down off the wagon and the horses and taking the equipment off the wagon.

Zane quietly indicated to his comrades that for the moment, they would stay where they were and observe.


	18. Reconnaissance Gone Wrong

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Thanks to MMM, lovesgod12, and Naruby7 for commenting on last week's chapter. Naruby7, for now all I'll say is...you may be on to something! ;)**

 **The reading below is a continuation of the previous chapter's action…**

* * *

 **Chapter 18 - Reconnaissance Gone Wrong**

For about an hour, the six Yellow soldiers remained in their hiding place in the woods, watching the Purples cut down trees and load them into the wagon.

Cole rolled his eyes. By himself, he could chop down as many trees as four of those Purples.

The Yellows also were able to hear some of the enemy soldiers' banter in between the chopping sound of their axes.

"If General Chen was in charge, we'd be halfway to Ouroborus by now," one Purple was heard to say.

"And by now we'd have this stockade built and filled with prisoners," another Purple commented.

From the Purple chatter, the Yellows were able to gather that a prison camp, which would be called Kryptarium Prison, was going to be built adjacent to the village and that it would hold about 2,000 prisoners. They also learned that General Chen was an underling of the Purple Army's commander-in-chief but was considered to be a more aggressive military leader.

Eventually the Purple soldiers filled their wagon with cut trees and got ready to leave the area. Not knowing where the Purples were going to head next, Zane decided that it would be best if the six Yellows left their current position and reconnected with Lieutenant Pierce's group. He quietly directed Michael Donlan to lead the retreat, then for Rusty to follow him, then Rowan, and then Cole and Kai. Zane figured that if Rowan's equestrian inexperience proved to be an issue, then Cole - the strongest of them all - would be right behind to handle Rowan's horse as well as his own. Zane himself would be the last to proceed.

As Zane turned his own horse, Shard, into the woods, he felt a weird sensation on his chest and then heard a small crunch of leaves on the ground next to him. He quickly realized, to his horror, that the leather strap of his binoculars had come untied at one end, and the glasses had fallen somewhere on the ground.

Zane swiftly dismounted Shard. He didn't want to lose those binoculars. They had once belonged to his great-grandfather and had been passed down through the generations. Not only that, he had attached to them a piece of leather on which he had written "Zane Falk, Garmadon Ranch/Ninjago Town" in case he misplaced them at Camp Goldland. If a Purple were to find the glasses, the discovery would alert them that a Yellow presence had been doing reconnaissance on them. Ninjago Town was known for its Yellow sympathies.

 _Where are they?!_ he frantically thought to himself, trying not to panic as he scanned the leaf-littered floor of the woods for the missing binoculars.

After what seemed an eternity, he finally spotted them. He picked them up and was a second away from shoving them into an inner pocket of his uniform when a voice said…

"Hands up, Yellow!"

Zane whirled around to face one of the woodcutting Purple soldiers on horseback. From the uniform insignia training he had recently received, Zane could tell that this man was a lieutenant. His gun was drawn and aimed at Zane's chest. His other hand held a sword.

"I came this way to answer the call of Mother Nature, and here I find there's some human waste already here," the soldier smirked.

In the second that followed, the young corporal realized that he would be killed if he reached for his firearm. He did have one other option he could take to get out of this dangerous situation, but as reluctant as he was to utilize it, he had no other choice.

"And that human waste is you!" Zane hissed. Then, using the skill at hitting targets which had won him a first-place finish in Company C's recent skill games, the Yellow corporal mightily hurled the object in his hand - his prized binoculars. His target was the hand of the Purple officer which held the gun. Once Zane threw the binoculars, he began to climb onto Shard, trying to make his escape.

The pair of binoculars reached its intended location. The lieutenant dropped the gun, yelping in pain at the impact of Zane's metal object on his hand.

At the exact same time, Kai and Cole had returned to the Yellows' hiding spot. They had noticed Zane was not following behind them and had backtracked to find out why.

Before Zane could urge on his steed to retreat, the Purple soldier slashed at Zane with the sword in his other hand.

Kai and Cole watched in horror as blood spurted from the face of their friend. Zane's left cheek had been sliced almost completely off. The Yellow corporal slid off his horse to the ground in agony.

The Purple officer spotted the two cowboys who had just arrived. He had been about to deliver a second blow to the Yellow corporal but immediately realized he was outnumbered. So he swiftly turned his horse to gallop away.

Kai's shock at the sight of his friend quickly turned to anger. "That son of a ...!" the hothead cowboy declared.

"Go after him! I'll get Zane!" Cole urged.

As Kai propelled his horse Flame into a gallop, he held onto the reins with one hand and got his lasso ready with the other. He dared not shoot at the Purple, for the sound of the gunshot would alert the other Purples in the vicinity that there was trouble afoot, and the Yellows who were doing reconnaissance in the area would be in danger.

Meanwhile, Cole jumped off his horse Rocky. The cowboy grabbed his black kerchief from an inner pocket of his uniform and ran to Zane's aid. Zane had started to choke on his own blood.

Fighting nausea at the sight of the platinum-haired cowboy's injury, Cole tied the kerchief around the injured corporal's face as best he could. Then, with his strong, capable arms, he picked up Zane, slinging him over Shard and quickly securing him to the saddle. Remounting Rocky, Cole hurriedly guided the two horses to where Lieutenant Pierce and the other Yellows were convening, so that he could alert them about what had happened and then hurry back to the Yellow camp to get medical help for the severely wounded corporal.

* * *

Kai and Flame galloped hard to try to catch up to - and lasso - the escaping Purple lieutenant, but the enemy combatant kept doing evasive maneuvers, darting to the left and then the right, and unfortunately he kept getting closer to being within earshot of his Purple comrades who were halfway back to the village with their wagonful of trees. Kai would soon have to retreat, or he would be in danger of being captured, especially if that lasso-practicing Purple Company, with its one hundred men, realized that a Yellow was in the vicinity.

Suddenly, two Yellow-mounted horses appeared, galloping at full speed. Wisp, with Jay riding atop him, was one of the galloping animals. Jay made a wide berth to the right and then circled back toward the Purple lieutenant in an attempt to get in front of him and head him off. The other horse, carrying Michael Donlan, came galloping on Kai's left, his rope ready for lassoing.

The strategy being carried out by the newly arrived Yellows was successful. The Purple, his path cut off by Jay, slowed his horse down, allowing Kai to catch up and rope him and allowing Michael to rope his horse. Kai jerked on his rope, yanking the enemy off the horse and onto the ground.

Kai quickly dismounted Flame and gathered up the rope as he hustled toward his captured target. With the gathered rope, Kai quickly trussed up the new prisoner. Jay, who had ridden up to join his two companions, jumped off Wisp and grabbed his blue kerchief out of his uniform pocket, tying it around the mouth of the man to prevent him from trying to shout for help.

They slung their prisoner over his horse's back, and with Jay leading the way back to where their Yellow contingent waited, and with Michael guiding the Purple steed, the small group quickly rode into the woods, out of the sight of the Purple Army.


	19. Reconnaissance Aftermath

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Spring to all!**

 **Shoutouts to lovesgod12, MMM, TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, AveXCninja11, and Naruby7 for your wonderful comments on the previous chapter.**

 **The chapter below is presented from a Purple point of view…**

* * *

 **Chapter 19 - Reconnaissance Aftermath**

A Purple captain by the name of Jacob Clouse led a group of a dozen men on horseback from his company in a search for one of his company's two lieutenants. Earlier that afternoon, the lieutenant had disappeared while on a mission to cut trees for the new stockade. The other men on the mission said that when they were getting ready to return from the woods, the missing officer had stayed behind, saying he was going to answer the call of Mother Nature, and then he would catch up with them on their way back to the village. It was now late in the afternoon, and the lieutenant had not returned.

The contingent of Purples had searched the immediate area of the woods where the tree chopping had occurred, but in the absence of any clues, they began to expand their search to the surrounding area.

Captain Clouse was not happy. He was very close to being promoted to the rank of Major, but the disappearance of one of his men - particularly if the disappearance was due to the soldier's desertion - would not please General Chen, in whose hands the fate of his promotion fell.

The ambitious handsome blond was already the youngest man to have attained the rank of captain in the Purple Army, but he wished to rise even higher, and he was willing to do whatever he needed to do to achieve his goals. He had even persuaded Skylor Chen, a Purple lieutenant who also happened to be General Chen's daughter, to accept his proposal of marriage, thus ingratiating himself with the high-ranking officer and the other top commanders. Clouse wasn't particularly in love with the girl, but it helped that she was pretty and would make a good hostess for officer parties.

"Captain! There appears to be dried blood on the ground!" The exclamation from one of his subordinates interrupted Captain Clouse's ruminations about what he was going to say to his future father-in-law regarding the missing lieutenant.

The officer guided his horse over to the indicated spot on the ground. After dismounting and examining the area, he agreed with the subordinate's assessment.

"Captain, I found something!" another subordinate called, riding up to the ranking officer while carrying two items. "This gun was lying over there," the sergeant said, pointing to an area a few yards away. "It's a Purple Army weapon. And this pair of binoculars was found nearby." The sergeant handed the metal object to the captain.

Captain Clouse examined the binoculars. The object appeared to be rather old. He looked through the glasses; there was a crack in one of the lenses. He looked at the writing on the attached leather tag.

 _Ninjago Town. A Yellow must have been here!_ the captain thought.

"Draw your weapons, men! Yellows were here and might still be around!" Captain Clouse commanded, swiftly mounting his steed after pocketing the two items just handed to him. A chorus of gun clicks immediately followed.

Upon the discovery of the Purple gun, the binoculars, and the blood spot on the ground, Captain Clouse quickly concluded that his lieutenant had been disarmed and had fallen into the hands of the Yellows, becoming badly injured in the process. "It appears our lieutenant has been taken prisoner by the Yellow Army. Retreat!" he ordered, waving his men to leave before he himself turned his horse to head back toward the village.

As the captain rode back to Jamanakai Village, he thought about how unhappy General Chen would be when he learned that one of Clouse's men was stupid enough to get caught by Yellows roaming in the area.

In order to get back in the general's good graces once again, Captain Clouse knew that when he himself came across a Yellow, he would have to take retaliatory actions.

Though the mystery of the Purple lieutenant's disappearance had been solved, another question quietly nagged at Clouse. A question about what else he had read on the attached leather tag of the binoculars.

 _Garmadon Ranch. Where have I seen that name before?_


	20. Many Worries

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **After a hiatus of over two months, this cowboy AU tale is back!**

 **But before we begin to dive into the nineteenth century, I wish to thank everyone who read my recently completed fanfic** _ **The Fire Within: The Fire Witch Incident**_ **. You guys are awesome! Hugs to you and to the commenters on the final chapter: StoryMaker7, lovesgod12, TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, Kai Lover911, INFJwriter, AveXCninja11, and Guest.**

 **(Note to Guest, which must be done here since I can't respond otherwise: I encourage you to create an account, or at least give yourself a moniker, because I'm fairly sure you've previously made nice comments on my chapters! And you have a good memory about the timing of the cowboys' babies in my AU story. Indeed, one cowboy will not make it home in time for his baby's birth!)**

 **My poll on where Kai and Sam should go on their honeymoon is still up and will be for a while, so I encourage you to vote if you haven't already done so. Thanks to those who have cast their ballot!**

 **And now, back to the nineteenth century...I wish to thank all eight wonderful commenters on the previous chapter of this cowboy yarn: lovesgod12, MMM, StoryMaker7, TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, AveXCninja11, Naruby7, SwimmerNinja13, and JayFan67!**

 **In Chapter 20 below, the men on the reconnaissance mission have returned to camp with the wounded Zane, whose face was severely injured by the strike of a Purple soldier's sword. That Purple soldier is now a prisoner of the Yellow army, having been captured in a daring chase by Kai, Jay, and their cowboy friend...**

* * *

 **Chapter 20 - Many Worries**

On the way back to camp, Kai found out that Lieutenant Pierce had seen him chasing the Purple soldier, and thus the officer had given orders for Jay (the best horseman in the group) and Michael Donlan (the best roper after Kai) to join in the chase of the Purple scumbag who had wounded Zane.

It was now twilight in the Yellow camp. The Purple lieutenant had been processed as a prisoner of war.

The tale of the afternoon events of the Company C contingent was circulating around camp. Wherever Kai had traveled in the camp during the last few hours, he had been congratulated by his fellow Yellows for his part in the capture of the Purple.

But worry for Zane overshadowed any pride he might have felt otherwise. Zane had undergone surgery in the field hospital and would need to be transferred to a military hospital in Sasnak City when his condition was stabilized. He had lost a lot of blood.

Kai, along with Cole and Jay, was with Captain Noonan when the officer sent the explanatory telegram to Mr. Wu, who Zane had designated as his next of kin.

At supper, the men who had gone on the reconnaissance mission ate together. Except for Cole, who said he was not hungry. Cole wished to stay by the field hospital, near the wounded Garmadon Ranch cowboy.

The normally rowdy banter among the men in the mess tent was subdued tonight. After supper, they each went their separate ways around the camp. Jay said he was going back to the sleep tent he shared with Cole, in order to start another letter to Nya. Kai went for a walk. He had a destination in mind.

Cole was seated on the ground against a barrel in front of the field hospital, idly tossing pebbles as Kai approached him.

"Howdy, pardner," the brown-haired cowboy said in greeting.

"Howdy," the black-haired cowboy replied listlessly, looking up briefly before he returned to tossing pebbles.

Kai seated himself beside his friend. "You all right?" he asked.

Cole threw a few more small rocks before answering. He turned to Kai, his face pinched and his eyes wide.

"There was so much blood, Kai. And pieces of flesh not meant to be seen by any human…"

Kai put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "And from what I hear, you did everything right, Cole. You wrapped his wound and put him on his horse all by yourself and got him back to camp right away. You were the best one out of all of us to be there when it happened."

Cole looked back at the ground. "It was awful."

Kai realized his fellow cowboy was not handling the event of this afternoon very well.

"I think maybe you should eat something now, Cole. You haven't had any grub since this morning." Kai fished through the pockets of his uniform and found some dried apple slices wrapped in cloth. "Have these. These are from the package sent by our wonderful Garmadon Ranch ladies," he smiled, handing over the small bundle.

Cole accepted the bundle. After slowly unwrapping the cloth, he picked up a piece of apple and studied it.

"Brooke said she's been wanting to make an apple pie," he said before taking a bite.

"Well, with Miss Gayle teaching her, she'll be baking the best apple pies in the whole county in no time!" Kai assured him. He hoped to get Cole's mind off the horror of the afternoon, and it appeared that the tall cowboy's discussion of the subject of apple pie was working to change his focus.

Suddenly an orderly, who they knew by the nickname of Shorty, rushed out of the hospital tent, carrying a piece of paper, a bottle of ink, and a pen. He stopped when he saw Kai and Cole. Knowing them to be part of Company C, he asked, "Have you seen Captain Noonan?"

"I saw him eating with the officers in the mess tent at supper, but not since then," Kai informed him.

Shorty looked in the direction of the tent, about a half-mile away. "I'll start looking there." He then looked at the piece of paper in his hand. "I have to get a signature from him. Since you're friends of Corporal Falk, you'll want to know that he's being transferred to the military hospital in Sasnak City tonight. The wagon leaves within an hour."

The two cowboys looked at each other. "So that means he's doing better?..." Kai's voice trailed off.

Shorty grimaced. "It just means he's stable enough to travel, because we can't do anything further for him here."

"Can we see him?" Cole asked, stuffing the bundle of apple slices in a uniform pocket while standing up.

Shorty nodded. "That would be all right. He's sedated right now, though, so he's not responsive."

"I'll go get Jay, so he can see Zane before the wagon leaves," Kai volunteered as he stood up to head toward Jay and Cole's tent, which was located right next to the one occupied by Kai and Rusty McKanna.

The brown-haired cowboy paused for a moment before setting out. "Should I collect Zane's personal effects?" Zane shared a tent with another corporal from Company C.

"That would save me a task if you would. Much obliged," the orderly gratefully replied.

"All right. I'll buckle to it," Kai agreed, turning in the direction of the sleep tents as Shorty led Cole into the field hospital.

* * *

A short while later, the Garmadon Ranch hands and Captain Noonan were assembled around the bed of their injured friend, waiting for the wagon to appear at the hospital so he could be loaded into it. Zane was unconscious and barely recognizable, with bandages covering most of his face.

Kai had brought Zane's knapsack containing his belongings from his tent. Now he was filling it with the items that Zane had been carrying in his uniform pockets at the time he was struck with the Purple soldier's sword. The nurses had placed the items on the bedside table after removing them from the bloody clothes of the wounded soldier.

Kai came across the empty binoculars case and looked around for the prized antique that was meant to be housed in it.

He looked under the table and the bed, but to no avail.

"Has anyone seen Zane's binoculars?" he asked. "They don't seem to be around."

"I haven't seen them since he was looking through them at the reconnaissance spot," Cole answered.

Captain Noonan frowned. "I'd find it hard to believe that someone around here would have stolen them. Everyone I've talked to has expressed sympathy for Zane's plight at the hands of that Purple rascal."

"I remember looking through them and laughing at that Purple Company's lasso skills," Kai recalled, "and I remember giving them back to Zane after Michael looked through them, too." In his mind, he quickly recounted the rest of their reconnaissance to come up with a clue as to the whereabouts of Zane's family heirloom.

Then he remembered a moment that made him feel uneasy.

At the moment he and Cole had returned to their hiding spot to see where Zane was, Kai remembered the clink of metal as the Purple soldier hollered in pain and dropped his gun. Had Zane thrown the binoculars at him?

If so, the binoculars ended up on the ground, where they could be found by the enemy army. If they had been unmarked, that would be one thing, but Kai had noticed Zane's identifying leather tag with the words "Zane Falk, Garmadon Ranch/Ninjago Town" from when he himself had looked through them.

Kai swallowed, hoping that the missing binoculars would not somehow end up endangering the residents of Garmadon Ranch. He felt sick at the thought of his beloved wife Sam ever becoming a civilian prisoner of those Purple varmints.

"Well, I reckon we can send the binoculars to him once we find them," Kai said, mustering up false cheeriness. He remained silent about his theory about where they ended up, not wanting to cause his fellow cowboys to worry about their women any more than they already did. He would speak to Captain Noonan later.

* * *

As the cowboys stood and watched Zane's wagon disappear into the darkness of the evening, they wondered if they'd ever see their friend again. To them, the patient had looked gravely ill.

A thought crossed Kai's mind. In addition to the day Morro had left him stranded in the desert, Kai could now add another entry to the list of worst days in his life…

Today. June 22.


	21. Unorthodox Idea

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **YEE HAW! In the USA, Cartoon Network will finally begin to air Season 6, beginning on Thursday of this week!**

 **I am SO HONORED at the wonderful response to the previous chapter of this soldier tale! The comments from lovesgod12, FirstFandomFangirl, StoryMaker7, MasterOfCupcakes (formerly known as Guest), TitaniumMasterOfAquaLightning, AveXCninja11, MMM, and Naruby7 were priceless!**

 **Additional thanks go to Naruby7, who also commented on my** _ **Fire Witch**_ **story, and to** **Awesam132 for commenting on my** _ **Valentine**_ **story!**

 **And since May 1, Kairocksrainbow, MasterOfCupcakes, and RhetoricalAnswer faved me as an author. You folks and the other 16 are just so awesome!**

 **In the chapter below, several references to events from my first fanfic** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **appear. The original accounts are in Chapters 10, 23, 27, 30, and 34.**

 **As the chapter below opens, the focus switches back to Garmadon Ranch. When we last left the ladies at the end of Chapter 16, the current day was June 24th. Chapters 17-20, the war action, occurred on June 22nd, a sort of a flashback to two days earlier. Now we are back to June 24th, just a few hours after the end of Chapter 16. The ladies are about to discover what happened with the cowboys...**

* * *

 **Chapter 21 - Unorthodox Idea**

Mr. Wu returned at suppertime, just like he said he would.

He and the four ladies of Garmadon Ranch sat at the dining room table for the evening meal. The atmosphere remained subdued after the delivery of the ominous letters from the cowboys.

One positive aspect of the gathering was that Brooke felt less nauseous than she did earlier in the day, and thus she had joined the group, though she didn't eat much.

The subdued atmosphere of the gathering, however, turned even more somber when Mr. Wu read to them the telegram he had picked up from town earlier in the day, along with the letters. The message, sent by his friend Captain Noonan of Company C of the 5th Ninjago Cavalry, informed him that Zane had been severely injured from the strike of an enemy's sword to his face while on a reconnaissance mission, and he would need to be transported to Sasnak City for further treatment.

The Captain concluded the telegram by commending the actions of Cole in swiftly seeking help for Zane, as well as the efforts of Kai and Jay in apprehending the enemy assailant.

A pall settled over the dining room table, with the nearly finished supper forgotten as the ladies dabbed their eyes with their kerchiefs after Mr. Wu had finished reading the telegram. They were horrified at the atrocity committed against their friend.

"Poor lad," Miss Gayle murmured, shaking her head sorrowfully at the plight of the platinum-haired cowboy.

"I'm sorry for not bringing this to the attention of you ladies earlier," the ranch owner apologized as he slowly folded the paper and placed it back in his vest pocket. "I didn't want to interfere with your joy of reading the letters from the boys. And...I reckon I needed a little time to absorb the bad news myself."

 _So that's why he skedaddled after delivering the mail_ , Sam realized.

"Well, as it turned out, there wasn't a whole lot of joy from their letters anyway," Nya pointed out, referring to the fact that each cowboy's missive to his wife discussed the topic of his possible death in battle.

"So I heard. Miss Gayle told me," Mr. Wu commented, stroking his beard. He sighed. "I'm planning to travel to see Zane. Not sure yet where I'll be going, whether it would be down south to the military camp or straight to Sasnak City. Depends on what I hear from Noonan tomorrow about Zane's condition."

He continued. "I'm also not sure yet exactly what day I'll be going. Depends on whether Lloyd can spare some time from his sheriff duties to tend the cattle while I'm gone. Bo won't be able to do it all by himself," he added, speaking of his gardener who had assumed cow herding duties when the four cowboys departed for the war.

"Seems like all the able bodied young men in the county are either in the war or taking the duties of someone in the war," he lamented. "If I could just hire an additional person, that would make running the ranch a mite easier."

* * *

Later that evening, after the supper dishes were washed and put away, Sam wandered down the hall to Mr. Wu's office with a cup of tea in her hand. The door was open. Peeking in before making her presence known, she observed the ranch owner sitting at his desk, which was covered by a large scattering of papers. He was leaning forward with one elbow on the desk, supporting his forehead with his hand in a gesture of tiredness.

"Excuse me, Mr. Wu," she said softly so as not to startle him.

"Oh, howdy, Sam," he replied, lifting his head to look up at her. "Come and set for a spell," he offered, waving his hand in a motion for her to come inside.

"I thought you might like some tea," she said, carefully walking in and placing the cup of hot liquid on an empty spot on his desk.

"Thank you kindly," he smiled. "It'll help me get through some of the dang paperwork I haven't yet touched due to being on the range so much more these days."

Sam settled herself on the office desk chair on the opposite side of the ranch owner. "Actually, Mr. Wu, my reason for being here right now is related to that subject. I was thinking that Blossom and Blaze and I could help with the cattle while you're gone," she offered, mentioning the horse that Kai had presented to her on her birthday last September, as well as the dog that Kai had given to her last Christmas.

"You mean you're offering to do some cow herding?" the older man asked quizzically as he took a sip of tea.

Sam nodded, folding her hands on the desk. "Yes, sir. You've been so good to Kai, and to me, and I'd like to help you out and repay you for your kindness."

Mr. Wu put down the cup and gave her a wry smile. "You do realize it's a smelly and messy job, and also sweaty in the summertime?"

"Yes, sir," Sam replied. She knew Mr. Wu was trying to discourage her unorthodox idea, since women did not ordinarily herd cattle, so she wanted to prove her awareness of the pitfalls of the work. "That's the way Kai has come home every day from the range - smelly and messy!"

The ranch owner laughed. Leaning over the desk, he patted her folded hands. "Touché!" he exclaimed, admiring the clever point she had just made. He leaned back in his chair. "But I'm just not sure it's a good arrangement. Miss Gayle told me her suspicions about Brooke's condition and that she'll be depending on you more as her pregnancy progresses, and Nya's, too."

Sam looked away and frowned. Miss Gayle had told her that, too.

She pressed her lips together in thought. "I could help her in the evenings," the young woman suggested. "The sun stays up later in the summertime, and the floor doesn't care what time it gets swept."

The older man smiled but he quickly brought up another obstacle. "But what about the danger of rustlers? Once or twice a year we get a little trouble from those varmints."

"Mr. Wu, I've faced danger before. Morro kidnapped me, drugged me, and tried to rape me. And I'm still here," she replied, reminding him of last year's shenanigans of her former saloon boss, who was now deceased.

Mr. Wu had to agree that Sam was a resilient young woman.

The white-bearded man sighed. "All right. Why don't you get some work clothes ready, and tomorrow, right after breakfast, we'll go out on the range, and Bo and I can show you some things. And, Sam," he concluded, leaning forward in his chair, "thank you for your kind offer. I knew Kai picked a good woman when he chose to marry you!"

Sam laughed as she blushed at the compliment. "I should be the one thanking you, Mr. Wu, for allowing me to help you," she responded gratefully as she stood up to leave. "I'll see you in the morning. Good night!"

* * *

Upstairs in one of the spare bedrooms, Sam found the set of work clothes Kai had worn the day before leaving for the war. His garments, as well as those of the other cowboys, had since been laundered and were now hanging in the armoire. A lump formed in her throat when she spotted Zane's clothes.

 _I hope he'll be wearing them again someday soon_ , she thought.

She took her husband's attire and brought the items back into the bedroom she shared with Brooke, closing the door after her. The willowy brunette was sitting at the small writing table, composing a letter to Cole.

"So what are you doing with those?" Brooke asked.

"I'm going to try them on," Sam answered, laying the clothes on the bed. "Tomorrow morning I'm going out on the range with Mr. Wu and Bo."

Brooke's jaw dropped. "You're what?"

"I told Mr. Wu I was willing to help tend the cattle till he gets back from traveling to see Zane," the blue-eyed woman said, unbuttoning her dress. "I figure it's the least I could do, after he let me stay here for two weeks last summer when I hurt my back in Skeleton Territory, and he hosted that wonderful wedding barbecue for Kai and me and Jay and Nya."

"He IS a very generous man," Brooke agreed, helping Sam step out of the frock. "Not many bosses would fund a wedding reception and a honeymoon, like he did for Cole and me." For a moment she remained silent in thought, then continued. "I suppose tending his cattle isn't really such a far-fetched idea. I actually kind of wish I could do it, too, except that…"

Brooke lowered her voice. "I think I might be carrying a child. It dawned on me when I was up here by myself this afternoon."

Sam hugged her roommate. "Oh, Brooke, that's what Miss Gayle suspected! She's thinking that the baby will be born about late February!"

"So Miss Gayle thinks so, too?" Brooke grinned as she returned the hug. "Well, can we keep it a secret from the boys for now? I don't want Cole to know until I confirm it with Doc Julien."

Sam nodded as she stepped back from the hug. "Sure. I won't write about it to Kai just yet. And we can tell Miss Gayle and Mr. Wu not to mention it yet. And I don't think anyone discussed it with Nya, so even though she planned to write to Jay tonight, I doubt she would have put it in her letter." Sam gestured toward the bedroom door. "Looks like Nya went to bed, 'cause her door was shut when I passed by it just now, so I guess that breakfasttime tomorrow will be your next opportunity to tell her."

Brooke's eyes danced with happiness. "Well, for sure I'll be telling her then. And I need to think about how I'll say it in a letter. Oh! And Mama and Daddy will be so happy about having a grandchild! They love children - I suppose that's fairly obvious since they had nine of their own!" she laughed.

Sam was touched by Brooke's delight at bringing a new life into the world.

She placed her hands on her friend's shoulders. "Oh, Brooke, I'm so happy for you and Cole!" She could say it with a sincere smile. Somehow she had new hope that there would one day be new life within her own womb.

"Thank you, Sam!" The ladies hugged again.

After their embrace of friendship, Brooke stepped back and said, "Now, let's see how Kai's shirt is going to fit on you."

Sam put on her husband's shirt over her corset. Not surprisingly, the garment was way too big.

Brooke cupped her chin in thought with one hand while taking hold of the excess shirt sleeve fabric with the other. "I could use the new sewing machine to help tailor these clothes to your size. It shouldn't take too long. Do you mind that Kai will have one less set of work clothes?" Fashion was a great interest of Brooke's, and she loved being creative with fabric.

"I think that would be all right," Sam mused. "There'll be time to sew a new set for him before the enlistment period is up."

"Good!" Brooke exuded newfound positive energy, something that they all lacked just a few hours earlier. "Put your wrapper on and bring the clothes, and let's go find Miss Gayle to ask if we can use the sewing room this late in the evening."

* * *

The hour was late when Brooke was finished, but Sam could now wear better fitting cow herding clothes. While Brooke tailored the garments, Sam - with the help of Miss Gayle - assembled accessories she would need. Like an old pair of work gloves. A kerchief. And the hat Sam had packed in her steamer trunk. Kai had brought it home as a gift for her one Saturday night after one of his rare trips into town to play poker with his Double S Ranch friends at the McAllister Saloon.

Before Sam climbed into her bed that night, she went to a dresser drawer and got out one more accessory she would need for herding cows on the range.

The gun she inherited from Bansha, the legendary markswoman.


	22. June 25th

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy, pardners! I'm so excited that this story now has over 100 reviews - the most of any of my stories! I appreciate all of them and wish to acknowledge the commenters on my previous chapter: lovesgod12, MMM, StoryMaker7, Kairocksrainbow, FirstFandomFangirl, Naruby7, and MasterOfCupcakes!**

 **As several of you know, I subscribe to the YouTube channel of Stephanie Brown, who creates wonderful videos of Ninjago episode clips set to great music. It's hard to choose a single favorite video, but one I am partial to is "We are the Brave," using music by Veridia. In fact, I rather regard this song as the theme song of my two cowboy stories! Anyway, I encourage you to check out her channel when you get a chance!**

 **In the chapter below, we move on to the following day. We first focus upon the severely injured cowboy and then focus briefly upon the new cowgirl at Garmadon Ranch…**

* * *

 **Chapter 22 - June 25th**

Zane opened his eyes. He opened his right eye, at least. His left eye was stuck shut by a bandage.

His last memories before losing consciousness rushed back to him...blood everywhere...Cole's worried voice urging him to hang in there...the incredible pain on the left side of his face.

He still felt pain on his face, but taking in his unfamiliar surroundings temporarily distracted him from his discomfort.

He gently turned his head to the right. The sun was streaming through the window on the far side of the large room, telling him it was daytime. He could see a long row of beds. The one right next to him was empty, but some of the others were occupied. The smell of disinfectant permeated the air.

 _I must be in a hospital,_ he thought.

Then a nurse came into his line of sight to tend to the patient two beds away from him.

Zane watched the slender young woman as she interacted with the sick person. She was certainly a vision of loveliness. Though much of her hair was tucked up in her nurse's cap, the curly ringlets that dangled freely were the color of milk chocolate. Her lips reminded him of the color of the wild raspberries that grew along the trail between Garmadon Ranch and Ninjago Town.

And when she smiled at her patient...oh, how Zane wanted her to smile at him, too.

As the nurse tended to the man in the other bed, her eyes darted over to the platinum-haired cowboy for a brief second, and then they widened as she realized he was awake. She then seemed to speed up her actions, and as soon as she was finished with that patient, she rushed over to Zane and sat in the bedside chair. The cowboy detected a whiff of mint - one of his favorite scents.

"Corporal Falk, you are awake, finally," she said with a melodious accent as she held his hand. The touch of her hand was like silk. And Zane got his wish - she smiled her beautiful smile at him.

Zane attempted to reply, but his bandages prevented his jaw from moving.

"Oh, I am so sorry. I did not warn you that you should not try to talk. Your cheek must remain still for several weeks." She let go of him and reached over him for something that he could not see at first, because it was on the small table next to the bed, on his left side. However, when she pulled back to straighten up again, he saw that she held a slate board, a piece of chalk, and a rag.

"You can use this to communicate while your face heals," she said, handing him the slate and chalk and placing the rag within his reach.

He took the slate and chalk and immediately wrote, "Where am I and how did I get here?" He flipped the slate toward her so she could see what he wrote.

She read the words and nodded in understanding as to why he would ask. "You are in the Ninjago National Military Hospital in Sasnak City," she replied with her exotic accent. "You arrived here yesterday morning on a transport wagon from the field hospital down near Jamanakai Village. I heard you were injured three days ago by the sword of a Purple soldier. I also heard that the Purple soldier tried to get away but he was captured."

Zane vaguely remembered hearing Cole urge Kai to "Go after him!" The corporal decided against asking the nurse for any details about the capture, such as if Kai were involved, for he doubted she would know. He'd find out later somehow from an officer.

Right now he had a more pressing question. In the remaining blank space of the slate, he wrote, "What is your name?"

She smiled that brilliant smile once more. "Je suis Celeste. I mean, I am Celeste. Please pardon me if I sometimes use words from my native language."

Celeste giggled. To Zane, the sound was like music from Heaven.

He erased the words on the slate with the rag and wrote new ones. "Are you from the country of Cefran? Your accent sounds like you are."

She nodded. "Oui! I mean, yes! I came to Ninjago from Cefran about two years ago. I came with my brother and his wife, for they wished to establish themselves in a new country, and I wished to attend the Sasnak City Training School for Nurses to learn to be a nurse. And see more of the world as well. I will finish my studies at the end of the year."

Zane was very interested in learning about Celeste's background and wanted to know more about her time in Cefran. "Did you see the great Eileff Tower in the city of Sirap?" he wrote after cleaning the slate.

"Yes, I saw it many times as a little girl! I grew up in Sirap," she announced excitedly, clasping her hands together.

Zane quickly wrote, "I wish to visit Sirap someday. I hear it is a city rich in history and culture."

"It is very nice," she responded. "I will be returning there to work as a nurse when my studies are finished. Even though I am - how do you Ninjagoans say it? - homesick, I know it will be only a few more months until I once again see ma mere and mon pere. I mean, my mother and father. "

Erasing the slate once more using just the side of his fist, Zane wrote, "Feel free to use your native language around me. I want to learn it."

"Merci. Thank you," Celeste smiled, patting his hand. "I guess that since you will be in this hospital for a while, there will be plenty of time to learn. Vous désirez manger? Do you wish to eat?"

Zane began to nod his head before the discomfort reminded him to keep his head still. Instead, he scrawled a hasty "Yes" on the slate.

Celeste rose from the bedside chair, and the gentle movement of air caused another whiff of mint to reach Zane once more. "Then I will bring you something," she announced. "I hope you like gruel. Because it is a light, bland food, you will need to have it fed to you for a while."

As long as Celeste would be feeding him, Zane didn't care what he ate.

* * *

Late in the afternoon, outside the back door of the Garmadon Ranch main house, bedsheets hung from a tree to provide privacy as Sam lowered herself into the tin bathtub of hot water. Her muscles, sore from riding her horse Blossom all day, seemed to cry out in gratefulness for the opportunity to soak. She hoped to rid herself of the aches, as well as the smell of cattle manure, by the time she exited the bath.

She certainly had new appreciation for what her husband Kai and the other cowboys did for a living.

As she washed herself, she could smell the supper that Miss Gayle and the other ladies were preparing. Either it was going to be an exceptionally tasty meal, or she was simply starving.

She mentally went over what she planned to do before she climbed into bed later.

After supper she would help wash the dishes and tidy up the kitchen.

Then she would do whatever project Miss Gayle wanted her to do. The housekeeper needed her help, and the young woman was bound and determined to provide it.

Sam surmised that tonight's project would involve packing a steamer trunk for Mr. Wu. This morning, after he and Bo had showed her a few things about cow herding this morning, the ranch owner rode to Ninjago Town and picked up the expected telegram from Captain Noonan. Zane was on his way to Sasnak City, and the cowboy's boss was going to board the stagecoach in Ninjago Town tomorrow morning to go see his ranch hand.

Another project might be to prepare the first-floor guest room, the one she and Bansha shared last year, for Bo was going to temporarily stay at the main house. Mr. Wu asked him to do so during the ranch owner's journey to Sasnak City, to make sure no trouble from strangers befell the ladies.

Sam also wanted to pen a get-well message to Zane for Mr. Wu to personally deliver, as well as write a brief letter to Kai that the ladies could mail tomorrow when they brought Mr. Wu to Ninjago Town and did the weekly town errands. Sam knew that Brooke was also planning to visit Doc Julien.

Sam did not plan to tell Kai about her cow herding activities in her letter to him. She knew he would feel bad that his absence from the ranch was causing hardship to his boss.

One thing Sam did plan to include in the letter, however, was a hairpin from her jewelry box. Not just any hairpin, however. It was the one that had fallen out of her hair in the desert as she struggled to escape Morro's clutches, on that awful day Kai had been left alone to die. The cowboy had found the hair accessory on the dry desert ground, though. He told her later that it gave him renewed strength to carry on in a bad situation.

Maybe it could do that a second time, too.

* * *

 **ANOTHER AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Chapter 23 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **narrates the story of the hairpin.**

 **I chose the name Celeste for Zane's love interest because I wanted to give her a nineteenth century name, but I also wanted her name to contain a syllable which sounds like "sull", which is similar to the sound of the second syllable of Pixal.**

 **As Celeste might say, au revoir pour l'instant! Goodbye for now!**


	23. The Summer Continues

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **As of yesterday, we here in the Northern Hemisphere are officially in the summer season! And I would like to kick off summer by thanking the NINE commenters on my previous chapter: lovesgod12, AveXCninja11, MasterofCupcakes, MMM, StoryMaker7, Kairocksrainbow, FirstFandomFangirl, Titanium Jay and Electro Zane, and Naruby7. You all are amazing!**

 **And since June 6, generalhyna and turtlepower12 have faved me as an author. You are so sweet!**

 **Thanks also to measuremesky for being my beta reader for the chapter below!**

 **In the chapter you are about to read, the first part focuses on Zane and includes the explanation of how he came to be a cowboy at Garmadon Ranch. In the second part of the chapter, the soldiers are receiving mail from home...**

* * *

 **Chapter 23 - The Summer Continues**

With his one available eye, Zane was managing to read a book which was propped up on his chest with a pillow as he lay in his hospital bed. The book had been loaned to him from Celeste's bookshelf. It was simply called "The History of Cefran." Despite the ever-present discomfort caused by his cheek, he was getting some enjoyment out of reading the book.

Every now and then, as Celeste attended to patients in the ward, her voice would waft through the large room and reach his ears, distracting him from his reading. He was not irritated when that happened, however. Far from it.

As Zane read about the construction of one of Cefran's famous bridges, the close proximity of Celeste's voice got his attention.

"Corporal Falk, you have a visitor," she smiled.

Zane's unbandaged eye widened at the shock and delight of seeing the unexpected visitor. His boss, Mr. Wu, was standing there with his hat in his hand. The platinum-haired cowboy's mind immediately traveled back to another time in the past when the white-bearded man with the weathered skin and piercing blue eyes stood by his bed as he lay in a hospital...

 _Zane Falk's family lived in a faraway land. They were fairly well-to-do and lived on a property of several acres outside the capital city of their country. Though they were not in the highest echelon of society, they were still able to afford some luxuries such as horse riding lessons for the platinum-haired child and his older sister. For themselves, they were able to indulge in their love of horticulture, procuring plants and creating gardens that became locally known for their beauty._

 _Life for the Falk family was pleasant. The older sister found love and moved into a small apartment in the capital city with her new husband so that he could attend the university. Young Zane excelled in school. He especially enjoyed reading about different cultures. Outside the classroom, he exhibited equestrian skill and began to enter competitions._

 _Unfortunately, when Zane was about 13 years old, an economic downturn in their home country caused his father to lose all their money. Already in his middle aged years, the elder Falk was in despair about his ability to provide for himself, his wife, and their son._

 _It was Zane who approached his parents about moving to a faraway country he had read about: Ninjago. In this nation, a family could have a decent life if they were willing to put in hard work, particularly in the western region. Also in the west, good horsemen were admired._

 _Aside from giving up relative proximity to their married daughter and her husband, Herr and Fru Falk had nothing else to lose, so they boarded a ship with their son and eventually found themselves in Ninjago Town, ready to do what they needed to do to find success in the new land._

 _Zane had a rudimentary knowledge of the language of Ninjago, having studied it on the ship voyage, so once they exited the stagecoach, he led his parents to the hotel to arrange for lodging for the night._

 _The next morning, they went in search of a church, to ask the pastor for his recommendation of which people to talk to about finding work. In Pastor Neuro's office, Zane did his best to act as the translator between his parents and the clergyman._

 _A knock on the pastor's door interrupted their conversation. It was a white-bearded gentleman. He had come to discuss a matter with Pastor Neuro and said that from the other side of the door, he had heard the plight of the family. It turned out that the bearded man, whose name was Mr. Wu, had just taken ownership of a ranch from the widow of his late brother. The brother's murder had understandably traumatized the family, and for the past few months after the tragedy, upkeep of certain aspects of the ranch had fallen by the wayside._

 _But now Mr. Wu was ready to pour his energy into maintaining the ranch and even building it up to honor the memory of his loved one, and one small way to do so would be to spruce up the neglected landscaping around the main house. The previous gardener had skedaddled in fear after the murder, and the weeds were growing tall._

 _As Zane translated Mr. Wu's offer of a gardener job to his father, and translated back the acceptance of the offer, he felt grateful for the kindness shown by the gentleman with the cream-colored cowboy hat, especially when it made his parents so happy. Zane could have sworn that ten years were instantly erased from his father's face._

 _Life was good on Garmadon Ranch. Herr Falk and his wife created lovely landscaping that was the talk of the county. Zane took an exam and easily passed it, proving he had met the requirements for a diploma from the school in Ninjago Town. Because he was still a bit young, and because his parents needed to save up money for higher education, he stayed on the ranch and did various jobs, such as helping to care for the horses after each long day on the range._

 _One day Mr. Wu caught him performing some stunt riding on a horse to entertain Lloyd, the ranch owner's young nephew. Mr. Wu immediately offered the talented equestrian a weekly job as a riding instructor to the youngster._

 _After about two years, Zane's older sister gave birth to a son, and the Falk family returned to their home country for a month-long visit with the newest little relative. The new grandparents were so proud of their little grandson. Zane enjoyed being in the role of an older relative and imagined being a mentor to his nephew in the future._

 _The happiness of the family was cut short, however. On the ship voyage back to their adopted homeland, sickness broke out among the passengers. Unfortunately, the Falks did not escape the spread of the illness. Zane's young age and robust health allowed him to withstand the pestiferous virus, but Herr and Fru Falk ultimately perished and were buried at sea._

 _Once the ship had docked in its destined port city on the eastern coast of the United States, Zane and the other sick passengers remained in a quarantined ward of the nearest hospital for about two weeks. When the quarantine was lifted, Zane was shocked to find Mr. Wu at his hospital bedside one day. The ranch owner had traveled all the way to the United States to see the young man after learning the awful news about his parents via a hospital telegram._

 _Zane, finally in the company of a trusted friend who was like a second father, cried into the older man's shoulder at the loss of his parents._

 _As the days wore on, Zane became stronger and healthier. Mr. Wu spent hours by his bedside. It was not too long before the young man was slated to be discharged from the hospital. And it was time for Zane to make a decision._

" _So, Zane," the ranch owner said, clearing his throat awkwardly as he stood up to leave the hospital ward for the night, "I'll be back tomorrow to help with discharging you from the hospital. Do you, uh, know what you want to do after that?"_

" _I wish to go home," Zane firmly stated._

 _Mr. Wu sighed. He had been hoping that the platinum-haired youth would want to return to Ninjago Town instead of his native country, for the ranch owner had formed a strong bond with the Falk family over the years, but he hid his disappointment. "I can understand that," he responded, mustering false cheeriness. "I'm sure your sister could probably take you in for a few years until you get established."_

 _Zane tilted his head in confusion at the ranch owner's reaction. "Mr. Wu, my home is in Ninjago Town."_

 _Mr. Wu's heart leaped. "Oh, Zane, I'm so happy to hear you say that!" In a rare deviation from the older man's tough-as-nails demeanor, he leaned over and hugged the lad._

 _Then, straightening himself up, he asked, "Would you want to be one of my ranch hands? We're down one, now that Zeke went off to prospect for gold."_

 _Zane didn't hesitate to answer. "I would be honored, sir!"_

"Howdy, Zane!"

Mr. Wu's voice brought Zane from his thoughts of the past into the present.

"Heard you got yourself into a bad box!" The ranch owner said in greeting. He was about to shake hands with the patient but hesitated, looking at Celeste for permission.

The nurse nodded. "It is all right to shake, though not too hard," she cautioned.

Mr. Wu took Zane's hand and squeezed it.

"I will leave you to your visit. If you need anything, let me know," Celeste said before departing the company of the two men.

Mr. Wu noticed that Zane's gaze lingered on the nurse as she walked away.

"I see you're admiring that piece of calico," the older man smiled as he settled into the bedside chair. "She seems like a fine young lady. Her accent tells me she's not from around these parts."

Zane held up the book and pointed to the word "Cefran" on the cover.

Mr. Wu chuckled. "Well, I'd say a certain cowboy is sweet on a certain nurse, if he's reading about her homeland!"

The ranch owner leaned forward in the chair. "And I'm glad you're already eyeing the ladies, barely a week after that Purple scoundrel sliced you open. That tells me you're doing all right."

Zane grabbed the slate and chalk and wrote, "I'm doing as well as can be expected." Then he flipped the slate toward Mr. Wu.

Mr. Wu smiled. "I'm happy to hear that! I'm planning to stay in Sasnak City for a few days to make sure things are going all right with you, if you don't mind."

Zane didn't hesitate to answer. "I would be honored, sir!" he wrote.

* * *

With a wide grin on his face after having gone through the mail line, Cole walked over to his group of friends who were waiting for him. The others had already collected their mail and were eager to go sit under the shady oak tree by the mess tent to read their newly delivered missives.

"All right, Cole, why do you have that saphead look on your face?" Rusty McKanna demanded as the black-haired cowboy approached them.

Wordlessly, Cole held up the two letters that Shorty had just handed him from the mail wagon.

Groans of envy and teasing catcalls ensued. Receiving two letters was a rare occurrence. Most soldiers got only one or none at all during a mail call.

"Can I read one, Cole, while you're looking at the other?" Michael Donlan begged, half jokingly but half seriously. "I didn't get anything today, not even from Jenny." The saloon girl back at McAllister's had agreed to correspond with him while he was away from Ninjago Town.

"No can do," Cole smugly replied, clutching the letters against his chest.

"Here, Michael, I got an idea. You can read part of the Ninjago Town Chronicle," Robinson Murphy offered, proceeding to separate pages of the newly received issue of their hometown's newspaper to share with his fellow Double S Ranch ranch hand.

"So are both your letters from Brooke?" Jay asked Cole, peeking at the two prized messages in his friend's hand. "I got one from Nya, and Kai got one from Sam. I wonder if the Garmadon Ranch ladies had a letter writing party."

Cole held the papers to his nose. "Yep. Even if I hadn't read the label, I could tell they were from her by the vanilla scent."

Rowan Birk sniffed his letter from his sweetheart. "Elly's letter smells like lavender."

"The letter I got smells like - paper," Rusty McKanna lamented. "It's from my sister," he explained.

As the banter continued, the men walked the few yards to their destination and sprawled on the ground in the oak tree's shade. Cole wasn't exactly sure which letter to open first, so he just picked one and tore it open.

The first letter from Brooke was written in direct response to his own letter in which he told her to marry again if something happened to him. He frowned when she said that sentence made her cry. He thought that maybe now that they got that sad business of dealing with his possible death out of the way, maybe he'd make his future letters to her less somber.

He picked up the second letter. It was thinner than the first one. He tore it open.

 _Ninjago Town  
_ _26th June 18xx_ _  
_

 _Dearest Husband -_

 _Right now I am sitting in Misako Julien's tea shop, resting during our ladies' day of errands in town. I wrote you a letter last night and have already mailed it, so this letter will be brief, as I wish to mail it to you before we leave town to return to the ranch._

 _One of my errands for today was to visit Doc Julien during his Thursday office hours, and he verified some wonderful news. You're going to be a daddy, Cole Hence! The blessed event is supposed to occur at about the end of next February. Start thinking of possible names for our future little one!_

 _I am going to write to Mama and Daddy now and share the good news with them about their future grandchild._

 _I love you so much, you handsome devil! Keep yourself safe so you can come home to these loving arms that are waiting for you!_

 _Your devoted wife,  
_ _Brooke_

Cole's heart leaped. "Yee haw!" he shouted, tossing his hat in the air and startling the young men around him. "I'm gonna be a daddy next February!" he proudly announced, jumping up from the ground.

Shouts of congratulations and happiness filled the air as his friends surrounded him, slapping his back.

As Kai joined in the impromptu celebration, he wondered in the back of his mind how Sam was feeling right now about the fact that Brooke was carrying a child. Kai himself figured that God would bless him and Sam with a baby sooner or later, but Sam was more anxious that it happen sooner.

In his next letter to her, he definitely would assure her that their time would come as well.

And he would thank her for the hairpin he just received from her, the one that once gave him strength in a bad situation. He would keep it in the pocket closest to his heart.

Just in case he needed it.


	24. After the First Battle

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Do you ever wonder how authors come up with names for their OCs? Here's how I came up with the names of the friends of the Garmadon Ranch cowboys:**

 **Rowan Birk (the bank teller) - a modification of the name Kirby Morrow, the actor who does the voice of Cole**

 **Michael Donlan (Double S Ranch cowboy) - a modification of the name Michael Landon, an actor from the 1960s and 1970s who played roles in the Western-themed TV shows** _ **Bonanza**_ **and** _ **Little House on the Prairie**_

 **Robinson Murphy (Double S Ranch cowboy) - the name of an actual Civil War soldier who won a Congressional Medal of Honor for gallant service in a battle near Atlanta, Georgia**

 **Rusty McKanna (Double S Ranch cowboy) - McKanna is the surname of an actual Midwestern pioneer family, and Rusty is a name I happened to like!**

 **Shoutouts to lovesgod12, MasterofCupcakes, Ninjagoelementals, Titanium Jay and Electro Zane, StoryMaker7, MMM, Naruby7, and AveXCninja11 for your comments on Chapter 23! I am pleased that Zane's backstory was well received!**

 **Thank you, Ninjagoelementals, for including me as one of your favorite authors! I hope to maintain the honor of being in your fave list, and the fave list of 21 others!**

 **See Chapters 40 and 41 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **to read the original accounts of publishing the wedding announcement and serving barbecue at the wedding reception. Both are mentioned below.**

 **In the chapter below, bad wartime happenings are mentioned, but nothing beyond the T rating of this story...**

* * *

 **Chapter 24 - After the First Battle**

Yelling. Screaming. Grunts. Horses. Gunfire. Cannons. Smoke. Blood. Bodies. Riding. Running.

Death.

Images of today's battle replayed in Cole's mind as he sat just outside his sleep tent at twilight, playing sad, soulful tunes on his harmonica. In the tents all around him, soldiers were busy packing up their bedrolls and belongings. The Yellow Army was preparing to retreat and relocate its camp to a more northerly location, farther from Jamanakai Village in the south of Ninjago and nearer to the central area of the country.

Today, the Yellows had just been soundly defeated as they attempted to retake Jamanakai from the Purple Army, who had occupied the rural hamlet for two months. The call to retreat from the battlefield had been issued in the early afternoon, after only four hours of fighting.

The clash was bloody, and Company C of the 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment participated in the suffering.

Robinson Murphy, a cowboy from the Double S Ranch, was killed by cannon fire.

Rowan Birk, the mild-mannered teller at the Ninjago Town Community Bank, lost an arm to a minie ball. He was currently recovering from the amputation in the field hospital.

And Michael Donlan, another Double S Ranch ranch hand, was missing and believed captured by the enemy. His horse had been found shot dead by multiple bullets.

After today's devastating loss, the Yellow Army now found itself in a defensive position. The leaders decided to pull the forces back to a location halfway between Jamanakai and Ouroborus, the main city in central Ninjago. This would mean that the village of Ignacia would be left unprotected, but it was felt that the sacrifice would have to be made for the greater good of keeping Ouroborus in Yellow hands. That city's central location naturally made it the transportation hub of Ninjago, and thus a valuable asset.

Jay bustled around inside the sleep tent he shared with Cole, packing up his war bag. The two of them had not exchanged many words after the battle, each being occupied with his own thoughts.

But Jay was noticing the lengthening shadows cast by the sun as it neared the western horizon. "Better get a move on, Cole, and pack your bag," Jay finally spoke. "Captain Noonan said we needed to be ready to ride at sundown, remember?"

Cole, who was just about finished with a sad song, did not answer Jay right away. He continued playing until the last note was completed.

"All right," Cole said lifelessly, pocketing the harmonica. He entered the tent.

Just a minute later, they had a visitor. It was Kai. The brown-haired cowboy was carrying two bags and two bedrolls.

"Would you two oblige Rusty and me by taking our gear to the gathering area for us?" he asked. "We thought we'd do a favor for Shorty and take care of rounding up the gear of Michael" - he swallowed - "and Robinson."

Their hearts ached for their friends from the Double S Ranch. Both Michael and Robinson, along with Rusty, had played many enjoyable poker games with the Garmadon Ranch boys and had shared much laughter in the years they had all known each other. Last year, at the double wedding reception of Kai and Sam and Jay and Nya, the cowboys from the nearby ranch served the guests their delicious barbecue, using their secret recipe, as a gift to the couples. Earlier this year, their wedding gift to Cole and Brooke was a supply of the ingredients, but without the appropriate measurements needed to create the tasty food. The cowboys had said they would reveal the actual recipe when Zane ended up getting married.

But just a few hours ago, Cole had been right next to Robinson, fighting on the chaotic battlefield, and through the hazy smoke the Garmadon Ranch cowboy had witnessed the cannonball hit the doomed soldier right in the chest. Watching the mangled and bloody body slide off the horse and onto the ground, Cole knew that his friend had instantly perished. If the black-haired cowboy could have, he would have collected the body and brought it back to camp himself, but with the bullets flying, he needed to attend to the business of staying alive. All he could do was turn Robinson's horse around and give it a slap on the rump in the hope that the animal would run back to the safety of the camp. And it had.

Some of the men had said that during the hasty retreat which occurred a while later, a fellow Yellow soldier named Murray had shouted at them that he had just seen Michael's horse get shot from underneath him, and that Murray was going to help him. The bullet-riddled bodies of Murray and his mount were eventually found near Michael's horse, once the armies had called a temporary truce to collect their own dead and injured. Michael had not been found dead nor injured, and no one could believe he would desert the army, so the only remaining explanation for his disappearance was that he had been captured.

Everyone knew, however, that the Purple Army would not verify that Private Donlan had been taken. Just before the start of the war, the Yellow Army had declared its intentions to withhold the identities and the whereabouts of Purple soldiers they had captured. This policy was meant to discourage the monarchy supporters from commencing hostilities. The Purples were not intimidated, however, and they had gone ahead and initiated the war, declaring that they, too, would not reveal the names of their military prisoners, nor where they were being held.

So all Michael's friends could do right now was hope that wherever Michael was, he would be all right.

* * *

 _ **The next day…**_

Michael Donlan, his hands tied behind his back, was escorted into the command tent of a Purple captain. The two Purple guards on either side of the cowboy shoved him into a chair. The Yellow prisoner winced from the resulting pain he felt in his ribcage. He guessed that he had injured a rib yesterday during the battle when he and his horse tumbled to the ground, right when the animal collapsed from multiple bullet wounds. After that, Michael was not able to move fast due to the discomfort, and thus he had been captured by the enemy army.

"That will be all, sergeants. Stand at ease outside until I call you again," the Purple captain said to the escorts, dismissing them. Then, after watching them leave, he focused his attention on the prisoner. Standing in front of Michael's chair, he put his hands on his hips and announced, "Private Michael Donlan, I am Captain Jacob Clouse of His Majesty's Royal Ninjago Army."

Michael studied his adversary for a moment. "You seem pretty young to be a captain," he smirked. "Does the Purple Army need to rob cradles to fill its officer positions?"

"Very funny, Donlan," Clouse snarled, slowly walking around the back of Michael's chair. When he reached a point just where he would re-enter Michael's line of sight, he backhanded a surprise blow to the cowboy's eye.

Michael gasped at the sudden pain, but he did not say anything. He merely gritted his teeth and waited for the uncomfortable sensation to subside, while Clouse completed his circle around the chair.

"Would you like to know why, out of all the Yellow prisoners we captured yesterday, I have singled you out for a personal interrogation by me?" Clouse sneered, standing in front of the cowboy once again.

Michael glared at him using his unswollen good eye. "I don't really give a hoot, but I reckon you'll tell me anyway," he answered defiantly.

Clouse rolled his eyes at the Yellow soldier's bravado but continued. "When we captured you yesterday, you stated that you belonged to Company C of the 5th Ninjago Cavalry."

"Yep, and that hasn't changed since yesterday."

Clouse leaned close to Michael's face. "Our spies have found out that Company C was formed in Ninjago Town."

The prisoner stared at his captor with contempt. "I ain't sayin' anything."

Clouse straightened up again. He reached into his uniform pocket and pulled out a metal object, holding it up. "These binoculars belong to someone by the name of Zane Falk from Ninjago Town. You know him?"

Michael swallowed. He remembered looking through Zane's binoculars on the day of that reconnaissance mission which had ended badly for the corporal. "Maybe I do. Maybe I don't," he answered ambiguously.

"It just so happens that on the day we found these binoculars, one of our Purple lieutenants went missing. And our spies haven't been able to determine what happened to him," Clouse explained. "Judging from blood we found on the ground near where these glasses were located, we have reason to believe that Falk severely injured our lieutenant and took him prisoner."

"Now hold on there!" Michael objected. "It was your man who hurt Zane!"

Clouse smirked. "So you DO admit to knowing Zane Falk."

Michael mentally face-palmed himself for divulging his acquaintanceship with Zane, thus giving this sack of cow dung standing in front of him something to smile about. So he decided to say something else to make the smile go away. "But your man didn't get away with it. I helped to stop him so he could get roped up, kinda like a young little Purple calf about to get a branding with a hot iron!" he chuckled.

The captain was not amused. Without warning, he clenched his fist and punched the defenseless Michael in the nose. "So you were there when it happened," Clouse growled. "Did you hurt my lieutenant?"

However, even with blood dripping down his face, the Double S Ranch cowboy remained defiant toward his Purple captor. "I ain't sayin' anything."

Clouse folded his arms and cupped his chin. "Well, I'll ask another question. Do you know Samantha Smith?"

Michael didn't have to say anything. The way his unswollen eye widened told Clouse that the answer was yes.

Clouse took his hand off his chin and idly examined his fingernails. "Is she still living at Garmadon Ranch?" He took his eyes off his hand and focused on the prisoner.

Michael still said nothing, not even an insult.

A slow smile creeped across the captain's face. "Listen, Donlan, I know where Ninjago Town is. I was there once. And I have access to a network of spies. You wouldn't want to be the reason for anything bad to happen to her, would you?"

Michael swallowed. Sam was a great gal, and he knew how deeply Kai loved her, so he definitely did not want harm to befall her. "Nothing bad happened to your man when we captured him. We took him back to camp, and he got processed and sent off to Darkley Prison in Sasnak City. That's all I know," he admitted.

"Now, then, what was so hard about answering a few questions?" Clouse smiled, responding in a mockingly soothing voice. "See, when people are reasonable, we can get things done."

"How do you know Sam, anyway?" Michael demanded.

The smile disappeared from Clouse's face. "I'm asking the questions here, Donlan!" He clenched his fist again and punched the prisoner in the ribs. This time Michael groaned loudly in pain.

Clouse was finished with his interrogation. "Sergeants! I need one of you in here, now!" he shouted.

When a sentry showed up, Clouse ordered him to watch the prisoner while the captain went to talk to the other sentry outside the tent, out of earshot of Michael.

"Bring the prisoner back to the stockade and leave him there for now," the superior officer commanded the subordinate. "But at sunset, retrieve him and meet me at the rattlesnake pit."

A confused look came over the subordinate's face. "The rattlesnake pit?" he questioned. He himself had helped to dig that pit, and he wondered why Clouse would want to show off his quirky pets to a prisoner. Did they share an interest in snakes?

"You heard me," Clouse scowled. "Having prisoners get bitten by rattlesnakes was one of the methods of execution in the days of the monarchy, just before democracy took over Ninjago. Private Donlan is no longer necessary to me, so he will be the first royal prisoner in over 100 years to be executed in such a way. Now move!"

Clouse and the sentry re-entered the tent, and the two sergeants took away Private Donlan. The captain, now alone, sat down at his desk and began to pen a message to General Chen, informing him that the whereabouts of the missing Purple lieutenant from several weeks ago were divulged by a Yellow prisoner through interrogation tactics, and that the prisoner would be summarily dispatched through the ancient execution method of snakebite venom.

 _That ought to impress old man Chen,_ Clouse thought as he stuffed the missive into an envelope. _I should soon have the rank of Major._

Clouse's thoughts then drifted back to a few weeks ago. In the days just after the binoculars had been found, he had been racking his brain, trying to remember why the name of Garmadon Ranch was familiar to him. Then it dawned on him. Clouse recalled that last year, his father - who still lived in his home city of Tonbos on the east coast of the United States - had mailed him a clipping of a wedding announcement from that city's newspaper. The article stated that an heiress from Tonbos had gotten married, in Ninjago, to Kai Smith, a cowboy from the Garmadon Ranch near Ninjago Town, and the couple would be making their home on the ranch. Clouse's father had mailed the announcement to his son because the bride, who was the daughter of the late business tycoon Cyrus Borg, was Clouse's former sweetheart, Samantha Borg.

And Clouse had been in Ninjago Town once. He had traveled there to meet Skylor, a leader in the Purple monarch restoration movement and now his fiancee, before she took him to Jamanakai to meet other Purple leaders and form the Purple Army. He had only spent one night in Ninjago Town, but that was enough for him. He couldn't understand why Sam would deliberately choose to shun the good life of Tonbos to live in such a dusty, godforsaken outpost of civilization.

Clouse shrugged dismissively before standing up from his desk to give the envelope to a subordinate to deliver to his future father-in-law. Sam's choice to live at Garmadon Ranch seemed foolish, but it had actually proved useful to him today.

 _Maybe Sam will end up being useful in other ways, too,_ he thought.


	25. Battle Scarred

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Today is the 240th birthday of the USA, the country in which I reside. I wish a safe and happy celebration to those who, along with me, are marking the occasion by participating in traditional Independence Day activities, such as parades, barbecues, and fireworks!**

 **I wish to thank the following TEN commenters on the previous chapter of this story. I don't believe I've ever received ten comments on one chapter before, and I so very much appreciate your support! Fist bumps to Titanium Jay and Electro Zane, FirstFandomFangirl, StoryMaker7, MasterofCupcakes, lovesgod12, MMM, JayFan67, WalrusWins257 (who also faved this tale last week), 1234, and Naruby7!**

 **The story I published last week,** _ **The Fire Within: The Independence Day One-Shot**_ **, was kind of a spur-of-the-moment idea that was fun to write! Thanks go to the following for their great comments: lovesgod12, WalrusWins257, StoryMaker7, MasterofCupcakes (who also faved), and Titanium Jay and Electro Zane (who also faved). You all are awesome!**

 **I also am happy that my older stories continue to be well received by the Ninjago fandom community. I wish to give a shoutout of gratitude to those who faved at least one of my other stories in June: Taiski, Generalhyna, MasterofCupcakes, WalrusWins257, and elementalshipper11!**

 **WalrusWins257 and Taiski also added me to their favorite author lists in the last part of June. Aww! You guys are so sweet!**

 **In the chapter below, the Battle of Jamanakai may have ended, but its ripple effect spreads...**

* * *

 **Chapter 25 - Battle Scarred**

 _ **Last week in July, 36 hours after the Battle of Jamanakai…**_

The screaming woke up Kai. And Rusty McKanna, the Double S Ranch cowboy who shared a tent with his Garmadon Ranch counterpart.

"Cole! Wake up!" they heard Jay shout.

They ran into the tent next door. In the dim light of the moon that filtered in past the tent flaps, they could see that Cole's eyes were closed, yet he was thrashing about on his bedroll, yelling "No! No!" His auburn-haired tentmate was kneeling beside him, shaking his shoulders and trying to rouse him from his slumber.

The soldiers in the nearby tents were being awakened by the ruckus. They began to congregate around the tent opening.

"Slap him!" Rusty suggested.

Jay frowned, but he drew back his hand and forcefully struck his comrade on his jaw. Cole's eyes flew open and he lifted his head. Small beads of sweat appeared on his forehead as he struggled to control his rapid breathing.

Now that the yelling had ceased, the soldiers outside began to return to their own tents. Some grumbling could be heard.

Cole looked around the tent and at his companions. "Why does my face hurt?" he asked dazedly, rubbing his jaw.

"Well, pardner, I had to slog you," Jay explained. "You were kickin' up a row there in your sleep!" he quickly added, in case Cole planned to retaliate.

Cole dropped his head back onto the bedroll once more. "Sorry about that. I must've eaten something at supper that didn't agree with me."

"Or you could just be overtired," Kai suggested, "since we didn't get proper sleep last night due to the retreat to our new camp location."

Rusty nodded in agreement. "So what say we all turn in again and try to get some more shuteye before daybreak?"

"All right," Cole agreed, feeling a little foolish. "Sorry to stir up a fuss. 'Night, all."

Final pleasantries were exchanged, and then Kai and Rusty returned to their tent. Jay settled back onto his bedroll and succumbed to slumber within minutes.

Cole, however, remained awake for the rest of the night, replaying his awful nightmare in his mind…

 _It's a beautiful spring day, and Brooke and I are having a picnic in that meadow near the Double S Ranch. Suddenly I look up and all these bloody people are crossing the meadow and coming toward us. Some are missing their arms, and some don't have their legs, but they're trying to kill us. I grab Brooke's hand and we high-tail it out of there, but they're just too doggoned fast! No! Let go of Brooke, you varmints! I said to let her go! Brooke, hold on to me! Don't let go! Brooke! NO!…_

* * *

 _ **Late in the last week of July…**_

The sound of a horse's hooves was heard outside the kitchen door at noon, as it usually was these days at about this time. The ladies didn't even pause from their midday meal preparations to look out the window to identify the rider, for they knew it was Mr. Wu who had arrived at the Garmadon Ranch main house upon returning from his daily ride to Ninjago Town for mail and war news. They could hear the dogs happily barking, not growling, so that was another clue as well.

"Howdy, ladies," the ranch owner greeted them as he walked in holding several paper items. He tried to be cheerful, but the forced joviality did not fool Sam. And her stomach began to churn, for the last time he displayed a false positive demeanor, he had been hiding the fact that Zane had been severely injured.

Miss Gayle, having been Mr. Wu's housekeeper for years, also sensed his underlying tension. "Ye be lookin' a wee bit weary," she observed. "Come and set. Care for lemonade?"

Mr. Wu eased himself into a chair at the kitchen table and accepted a glass. "Thank you. That would be nice."

"What's the latest news from town?" Nya pointedly asked. She also knew something was amiss.

The four ladies waited for his answer with trepidation.

"All right. I reckon I might as well tell you." The white-bearded man sighed. "There was a battle earlier this week. The Yellow Army tried to retake Jamanakai Village from the clutches of those blasted Purples. And they failed."

The ladies gasped.

"Our Garmadon Ranch boys are all right," he continued, "but the boys from the Double S Ranch are not."

"What do you mean?" Brooke asked, speaking through her hand, which she had just used to cover her mouth in shock.

"Well, actually, Rusty's fine," Mr. Wu clarified. He took a sip from his glass, to delay the bad news for a few more seconds. "But Michael is missing, and Robinson is...dead."

Tears filled the ladies' eyes.

"Mo Dhia!" Miss Gayle uttered, using the language of her faraway homeland, as the younger women began to sob at the terrible news about their friends. As the housekeeper instinctively began to gather the cowboys' wives together in an embrace, feeling motherly toward the the young women, she looked at Mr. Wu.

"Senor and Senora Garcia must be devastated," she commented.

Francisco Garcia, the owner of the adjacent ranch, had started up the Double S about 30 years ago. He and his wife were kind people who had always treated their employees well. They had also been wonderful neighbors to the Garmadon family and their employees, too. In addition, Senora Garcia was an excellent cook. She had raced over to bring enchiladas, cornbread, rice, and comfort to Misako Garmadon right after learning of her husband's murder on the banks of the Ninjago River years ago.

Mr. Wu slowly nodded as he reached into his vest pocket for his handkerchief to offer it to one of the distressed ladies. "I saw Francisco. He thinks he'll hold a memorial service for Robinson here in Ninjago Town, since this is where Robinson lived, and also because his elderly grandmother and aunt in Chitow City don't have the resources or the stamina to plan one of their own."

"It bothers me to say this," Mr. Wu continued, "but in a way I feel worse about Michael's fate than Robinson's. If those slimy Purple varmints killed 11 innocent civilians back in May when they took over Jamanakai Village, who knows what they would do to a Yellow prisoner of war…"

The younger ladies began to sob louder, making the ranch owner think that perhaps he should have kept that last comment to himself, at least until later.

* * *

 _ **Early in the first week of August…**_

In the dining room of the Garmadon Ranch main house, Mr. Wu, Miss Gayle, and two of the ranch hands' wives finished their supper in silence. A few minutes earlier, Nya had quickly stood up and excused herself to retire to her bedroom for the rest of the evening.

Mrs. Walker had suddenly departed upon becoming distraught at the news Mr. Wu had revealed at the supper table: Ignacia had now fallen into the hands of the Purple Army. Without the Yellow Army around to defend it, having retreated farther to the north, Nya's childhood village was easily occupied by the enemy. Despite the lack of a resistance effort, there still were casualties. The Purples would not publicly release the names, for it was their policy to withhold that information, but they claimed that 15 civilians were killed and 30 were wounded.

Nya had no kinfolk in Ignacia anymore, but she had maintained numerous friendships. She knew in her heart, though, that some of her friends were now dead.


	26. More Wounds Need Healing

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Note to WW: Here it is! :D**

 **I hope everyone is enjoying the month of July so far! Several of you have been taking vacations. I myself will be traveling at the end of next week to spend a few days in Phoenix, Arizona, the same city I went to last year on a vacation. Hard to believe that it's been almost exactly one year since I was struck with inspiration at an Arizona ghost town to write my very first fanfic,** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **!**

 **ELEVEN comments on the previous chapter! I want to send cyberhugs of gratitude to FirstFandomFangirl, lovesgod12, MasterofCupcakes, MMM, Titanium Jay and Electro Zane, StoryMaker7, AveXCninja11, Princess Bunny, WalrusWins257, Naruby7, and JayFan67! Many of those who I just mentioned are also writers as well as readers, so I heartily recommend checking out their wonderful works!**

 **In the chapter below, the Garmadon Ranch ladies are the recipients of more news from the war…**

* * *

 **Chapter 26 - More Wounds Need Healing**

 _ **Late in the first week of August...**_

Before another week had passed, Mr. Wu had more bad news to report to the Garmadon Ranch ladies upon his return from his daily ride to Ninjago Town. There had been another major skirmish four days ago - it had been the second clash of the war and the second defeat for the Yellows. In this latest battle, near the town of Shanville, the Yellows were pushed back farther north toward Ouroborus.

This time, however, no one from Company C of the 5th Cavalry was on the list of the dead, and the ladies were very thankful for that. The memorial service for Robinson Murphy was scheduled for tomorrow, and they didn't think they could endure attending a second one.

Mr. Wu had some additional news as well. "Apparently the governor has replaced the top Yellow general, in light of the two defeats this month. Let's hope the new man can force those Purple scoundrels back south. If the Purples ever manage to reach Ouroborus, they could really make a mux of things."

The ranch owner sipped from the glass of lemonade served to him by Miss Gayle, then he reached into his pocket and pulled out some papers. "So...we have some mail today. Keep in mind that the boys wrote these letters before the battle at Shanville. Sam, here's a letter from Kai," he said, extending an envelope to a delighted Mrs. Smith.

He fished through the papers in his hand once again. "And Nya, here's a letter from Jay." Mrs. Walker practically grabbed it out of his hand.

Mr. Wu abruptly stood up from the table, taking his glass in his hand. "I need to take care of something in my office before I go back out on the range. Brooke, would you mind giving me some assistance with it?"

"Of course, Mr. Wu," she agreed, biting her lip to hide her disappointment. _Didn't I get a letter, too?_ she wondered.

"And why don't you take a glass of lemonade with you?" he suggested.

"All right," she agreed, puzzled at the recommendation.

The ranch owner waited for Miss Gayle to pour and hand Brooke a glass before leading the young woman down the hallway. On the way, the brunette tried to convince herself that surely Cole had written a letter and it simply was delayed in transit. _It'll certainly arrive tomorrow,_ she hoped.

At the office door, Mr. Wu gestured for her to enter first. He entered after her and closed the door behind him. "Please have a seat," he said, indicating the office guest chair on the other side of the desk.

After she sat and placed her glass on the desktop, Mr. Wu eased himself into the chair on the other side. He set down his papers, folded his hands on the desk, and looked at her.

Brooke was confused. "What did you need help with, Mr. Wu?"

"Actually, Brooke, I just wanted to speak to you privately." He pulled a yellow piece of paper out of his vest pocket and handed it to her. "This telegram came for you."

He saw the stricken look on her face as he handed it to her. "Don't worry. Cole's not dead," he assured her.

He waited as she read it, watching her as her eyes widened. She finally looked up at the ranch owner with a scared look on her face. "Captain Noonan says Cole's in Sasnak City."

"Yep." Mr. Wu reached across the desk to put his hand on hers. "Noonan sent me a telegram, too. He said he thought it was best to remove Cole from duty and have doctors observe him at the military hospital, since he kept waking everyone up every night with those nightmare hollers. The other men needed sleep, and hopefully the doctors can figure out how to get Cole to have a good night's sleep, too."

Brooke wiped a tear with the back of her hand. "Cole never mentioned any nightmares in his letters. In fact, the letters he sent after the first one were all positive."

"Likely he didn't want to worry you, especially now that you're carrying a child," Mr. Wu speculated. He reached into a vest pocket and fished out his handkerchief, offering it to her.

She gratefully accepted it. Using it to wipe another tear, she announced, "I want to go to Sasnak City to be with him."

"I thought you might," Mr. Wu said, leaning back in his chair. "Since I don't want to see you traveling by yourself, and since I want to visit him, too, what would you say if we planned to leave together for Sasnak City on the day after tomorrow? That would give me some time to take care of a few things first, like make sure the cattle are taken care of. I'm going to ask Sam if she's willing to herd cattle again. And of course, tomorrow is Robinson's memorial service."

The brunette looked at the floor and nodded. "The day after tomorrow would be fine. It would give me some time to pack my steamer trunk and put in a few things for Cole." She reached for her glass of lemonade and took a refreshing sip.

Setting her glass down again, she briefly looked down at the floor again before meeting the gaze of the ranch owner once again. "This situation is exactly like the one my daddy was in, when he had all those nightmares after the explosion at his factory. I wish Cole could see the same doctor that my daddy saw."

Mr. Wu stroked his beard. "Actually, maybe he can. Cole will become a civilian again at the end of the month, when his 90-day enlistment period ends. Assuming he'll still be in Sasnak City at that time - and I reckon he will be, if the Army folks thought his condition was bad enough to move him there in the first place - he could then legally check himself out of the military hospital as a civilian, and you two could continue on to Ogacich from there."

He continued. "In the meantime, while you're visiting with him in Sasnak City, you can make the necessary arrangements for your time in the United States. I'll pay for the travel and the medical things."

"Oh, Mr. Wu, I can't possi-" the former saloon girl began, before she was interrupted.

"I insist." Mr. Wu let go of his beard to hold his hand in the air to stop her from speaking further. "Cole's one of my honorary sons, and I want to see him get well! And I'll arrange to collect Rocky from the military camp, like I collected Shard," he declared.

Brooke grinned, knowing it was useless to argue. "Thank you, Mr. Wu, for everything. You're very kind!"

"I'll do anything for a smile," he winked, making her giggle. "Oh, here's another reason for you to smile." He pulled out an envelope from his pile of papers and handed it to her. "I wanted to wait to give this you until after we talked about the telegram."

Her breath hitched in excitement as she accepted the envelope. _A letter from Cole!_

"So I reckon we'd both best be getting a move on," he said, standing up from his chair. "There's a lot to do before we get on that stagecoach!"

"True," the willowy young woman agreed as she rose from her chair to leave.

"You know," Mr. Wu paused, "Zane wasn't exactly the luckiest dog in the world when he got sliced up, but at least this month he'll be getting a whole passel of visitors - Cole, me, and you! Oh, and you'll get to meet the pretty nurse Zane's had his eye on!"

Brooke had forgotten that Zane was in the same building that Cole was in, and she felt guilty about that, but she knew that it was because she was distraught over the news about her husband.

She thought of an idea. "Maybe I can strike up casual conversations with the nurse and find out how she feels about him!" she suggested with a chuckle.


	27. Temporary Homecoming

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **After nearly THREE months, I finally completed the next chapter of this tale! I thank everyone for their patience!**

 **In the chapter below, Sam is once again tending the cattle in Mr. Wu's absence. But the impatience she is experiencing this afternoon is quickly forgotten when…**

* * *

 **Chapter 27 - Temporary Homecoming**

 _ **Last week in August...**_

Sam's patience with her horse Blossom was wearing thin on this late August afternoon. Yesterday's heavy rainstorm had made mud patches in the pasture, and Blossom was acting like she didn't know how to walk through puddles. She refused to go where Sam wanted her to go during the young blonde woman's tending of the Garmadon Ranch cattle.

Exasperated, Sam decided to dismount the horse in order to guide the animal on foot through a particularly saturated piece of the pasture. Just then, however, her Australian Shepherd dog Blaze began to bark, startling Blossom. The horse moved suddenly, causing Sam to lose her balance during the dismount and fall into the wet slime. The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the ground, cringing at the thought that her entire backside was now covered in muck.

Puffing air out of her cheeks in frustration, Sam reminded herself that by this time tomorrow, she would be finished with her cow herding duties. Mr. Wu would be returning to Garmadon Ranch sometime this afternoon on Cole's horse, Rocky.

The ranch owner had spent a majority of the month of August in Sasnak City, visiting with Zane and Cole in the military hospital. Zane needed to remain in the hospital for several more weeks. Cole, however, would be leaving the hospital in a matter of days, and from Sasnak City, he and Brooke would be traveling to Brooke's home city of Ogacich, in the United States, to see her father's doctor.

In a telegram for Miss Gayle, which Mr. Wu had sent from Ouroborus after collecting the black-haired cowboy's gelding, he had informed his housekeeper of his anticipated day of arrival. He also mentioned that he would be attending to ranch business matters the following morning before taking over the herding duties from Sam.

Slowly and carefully, Sam extricated herself from the mud and stood up. She was definitely looking forward to her bath before supper, even more so now than before. But today's bath had to be an extra quick one. She had several tasks on her list of things to do before tomorrow's special event - Kai and Jay were coming back home from the army after their 90-day enlistment period. After months of missing her brown-haired cowboy deeply, Sam would finally be in Kai's arms once again.

The cowboy's wife had a feeling, however, that the men's time at home was going to be temporary. Though Kai did not specifically say so in his letters, she figured he and Jay were going to re-enlist. The war was going badly for the Yellow Army.

But for however long Kai would be at the ranch, he and Sam would live at their cottage. So at midday tomorrow, after she returned from the range and freshened up, Sam planned to ride over to the little house and do some rudimentary tidying and setting up of things, since no one had lived there in three months. There she would wait for her husband to arrive around suppertime, after he - along with Jay - had paid a visit to their boss and his housekeeper at the main house.

A basket containing a picnic supper would accompany Sam to the cottage tomorrow. A special baked item would be contained in the basket as well. In honor of the first wedding anniversary of the Smiths and the Walkers, which had occurred last Monday, Miss Gayle had volunteered to bake a strawberry pie for Kai and a blueberry pie for Jay.

Because Sam had been busy with mentally going over her plans, she had not initially noticed the sound of galloping hooves coming across the pasture. She looked up to see a rider heading her way.

It wasn't Bo the gardener who, like Sam, was filling in for the absent cowboys. She'd never seen Bo ride his horse so fast.

Instinctively, Sam reached for her sidearm, which had managed to escape the mud. She'd had some target practice with the weapon she had inherited from the legendary markswoman Bansha, but that was a while ago.

Swallowing her nervousness at the approaching potential danger, she pulled the gun out of the holster and assumed the stance she remembered Kai had taught her. Holding her weapon in both hands and raising it in front of her with straightened arms, she pointed the gun at the approaching horse and rider.

Then Sam saw the rider wave his hat in the air. _He must not be planning any skulduggery if he wants me to notice him_ , she thought.

"Sam!" the rider called. Blaze began to bark energetically, and he bolted in the direction of the rider and the horse.

Then Sam realized who was heading toward her.

"Kai!"

She hurriedly tucked her firearm back in the holster and ran with all her might toward him, trying to avoid slipping in the puddles.

Kai finally reached Sam. He hopped off his gelding Flame before the horse had even fully stopped.

They met in a tight hug. The momentum of their embrace allowed him to easily lift her up and twirl her around. His beard tickled her face. Blaze pranced happily around them.

He set her down on the ground once again, and they hungrily sought each other's lips, craving the kisses they so longed for during the past three months.

Their lips finally parted. "Oh, Kai! I missed you so much!" Sam cried, happy tears streaming down her face.

"I missed you, too, Sam," her husband replied, touching his forehead to hers.

A confused look spread across her face. "How is it that you're here a day early?" she wondered.

Kai grinned. "It was Jay's idea to purposely give you all the wrong date so we could surprise you!"

"And you did!" Sam blushed, realizing that Kai had now discovered the secret she had kept from him in her letters - her time spent cow herding. "I guess Miss Gayle must have told you where to find me," she said sheepishly.

"Yep, she did. Later you'll have to tell me what in tarnation you were thinking, young lady, to be coming out here while wearing my clothes" - Kai pretended to frown - "but right now I'm taking over for the rest of the day, so you can go back to the main house, get cleaned up, and head to our cottage to do what you need to do. I'll meet you there after the herd is settled for the night and I've had a chance to go to the main house to say howdy to Mr. Wu. Then in the morning we can go back to the main house for an ace-high breakfast, and then I'LL be the one going out on the range tomorrow!"

Kai began to escort Sam toward Blossom but didn't see that Blaze was in his way until the last split-second. In the attempt to avoid stepping on the dog, the cowboy lost his balance and fell in the mud - dragging Sam down with him. He landed on his back and she fell on top of him.

After a few seconds of realizing what had just happened, a smirk spread across his face. "Too bad we can't go to the cottage right now, shuck off every stitch of our muddy clothes, and jump in the Ninjago River together to get cleaned up," he chuckled, his soft brown eyes mischievously twinkling.

"I see you haven't lost your brashness," she grinned.

* * *

Though she had told him he hadn't lost his brashness, Sam noticed that there were ways in which Kai had indeed subtly changed during his tour of duty. For one thing, in conversing with her, he accidently let cuss words slip out, obviously a habit he had picked up while being in the sole company of other men for so many weeks.

And, before he had gone away to war, he had always loved her at night with a sense of frisky playfulness, even on that last night before he left for Camp Goldland.

But his exposure to so much death had an effect. Tonight, as they reunited, he loved her with an air of seriousness, as if it were the final time they would ever be together.


	28. Before the Next Tour of Duty

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **I am very pleased to present the next chapter of this soldier tale in a more timely fashion** **than I have been posting. Two chapters in the same month - yay! The next three chapters are almost ready and are full of action, and I can't wait to share them!**

 **I'm still aiming to catch up on my reading of other authors' updates. I'm over a week behind, but I assure those authors that I intend to read your writings as soon as I can!**

 **The comments on the previous chapter by StoryMaker7, lovesgod12, guest, Naruby7, and MasterofCupcakes are very much appreciated! I also appreciate MasterofCupcakes and Taiski for faving this tale since the day I posted Chapter 25!**

 **The chapter below begins a few evenings after Kai has returned from serving in the Yellow Army...**

* * *

 **Chapter 28 - Before the Next Tour of Duty**

Kai and Sam sat on the porch swing of their cottage after supper on an early autumn evening, several days after his return to Garmadon Ranch. After Kai's day of tending the cattle and Sam's day of tending to the household, they welcomed the opportunity to simply sit and be with each other.

The cowboy had his arm around his wife, but their mood was not a happy one. They were discussing the prospect of his reenlistment in the Yellow Army. They had postponed the discussion ever since he had returned from his three-month tour of duty, but they knew that the subject could not be put off any longer.

"This time, they've increased the enlistment period. Soldiers who voluntarily sign up will now have to serve 180 days instead of 90," he told her. "The Purples are proving to be a lot stronger than anyone ever expected. There's even talk of a draft being instituted this autumn, and drafted men are likely to be required to serve for a period of at least one year."

"What has Jay said he's going to do?" Sam asked, settling in closer to him and resting her head on his shoulder.

Kai rested his cheek on top of her golden blonde tresses. "Just today while we were on the range, he told me that he and Nya decided it would be better for him to reenlist instead of waiting to be drafted. For a couple of reasons. Enlisting means there's a choice to join a cavalry, but being drafted means he'll be forced to join an infantry."

He continued. "Either way, enlistment or draft, he'll be missing the baby's birth, but he reckons he can leave the army sooner and miss less of the baby's growth if he voluntarily signs up again, and Nya would much prefer that."

"Oh, and Jay said something else." Kai raised his head up suddenly, causing Sam to lift her own head to look at him. "While he's gone, Nya is going to live with his mama and daddy at their new home in Barrburg. She'll have the baby there, and her in-laws can help her care for the little shaver. Jay felt that if he couldn't be around for the baby's birth and first few months, at least the love from the baby's grandpa and grandma could somewhat make up for him being gone."

Sam felt a little sad at the news that Nya was going away for the next few months. The raven-haired beauty was the first friend Sam had made upon moving to Ninjago Town to work at the Morro Saloon a little over a year ago. During that time, Nya and Brooke - who had been dearly missed by Sam ever since the brunette left with Cole for Ogacich several weeks ago - had become like sisters to the Ninjago newcomer. But she understood that living in Barrburg would be the best choice for the mother-to-be.

She nodded. "Jay's mama and daddy will give the baby lots of love, no doubt!" she agreed.

Kai reached for her hand. "One good thing about me reenlisting with Jay is that if we rejoin the Yellow army by the end of the week, we'll be given the rank of corporal, and that's worth a few extra dollars in our pay."

He gave her hand a squeeze. "The bad thing is that I won't be with you on your birthday." September 22nd was still two weeks away.

"Oh, Kai, I don't care about that," she protested, giving him a nudge. "It sounds like the best thing for you to do is sign up again. Sign up now, so you can be home again sooner. Home again with me." She let go of his hand and cupped his cheek.

He gazed into her earnest blue eyes. "I love you, Sam," he said quietly. Usually he followed this statement with a kiss, but now he simply studied her face, to memorize her beauty in the twilight.

"I love you, too, Kai," she whispered.

Kai swallowed. "Jay's planning to stay two more days here at Garmadon Ranch and then leave. I'll let Mr. Wu know that I'm going with him."

He watched as tears pooled in his wife's eyes. Wordlessly, he used his thumb to wipe away a tear that escaped down her cheek. Before another tear fell, his lips sought hers. Their minutes together were now numbered.

* * *

 _ **Three evenings later…**_

Sam, who once more was living in the main house of Garmadon Ranch, was seated in Mr. Wu's office after supper on a tiring day, which had begun with the emotional morning departure of Kai and Jay for Camp Goldland. From there, the men would reconnect with Company C of the 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, currently stationed north of Shanville.

Sam sipped from a cup of soothing hot tea while perched on Mr. Wu's guest chair. The ranch owner sat across the desk from her with his own hot beverage. He had just asked her to spend another 7-10 days tending to the cattle, and she had just agreed, knowing that his third extended absence from the ranch would be for the purpose of escorting Nya to Barrburg in eastern Ninjago, about a day's ride north of Sasnak City. Through telegram communication, the senior Walkers had happily agreed to Jay's idea and were now eagerly awaiting the arrival of their daughter-in-law.

"Thank you once again, Sam, for watching the cattle in my absence," the white-bearded man said in gratitude. The help you've provided has been invaluable, and I appreciate it."

He took a sip of tea before continuing. "But your third time at cow herding will be the last time."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked in confusion. He had just said her help was invaluable before saying he didn't want her help anymore.

Mr. Wu set down his teacup. "When I come back, I'm selling all but a handful of cattle."

"But why, Mr Wu?" Sam was alarmed. Cattle was his livelihood.

The ranch owner leaned back in his chair. "There are a few reasons. One reason is that I'm getting tuckered out from tending the cattle, riding into town every day for war news and mail, and taking care of the ranch business all at the same time. In my younger days, I used to be able to rassel a bear and bust a bronc before I even ate breakfast," he laughed, causing Sam to also laugh at his exaggeration, "but I'm getting a little long in the tooth now."

He continued. "Secondly, winter's coming, and I can't ask you or Bo to be out on the range all day when the snow is blowing so hard it stings your eyes and the freezing temperatures chill you to the bone. That's tough enough for a regular cowboy."

The ranch owner then leaned forward in his chair and held his resting teacup between his hands. Avoiding Sam's gaze, he looked down at the cup's contents, and his demeanor became serious. "But the most worrisome reason is that the Purples are marching toward the village of Corbett. If the Yellow Army can't hold them at Corbett, the route to the cattle market will be closed off. And we need to be able to convert the cows to cash. The county tax collector can't exactly accept cows as payment of the yearly taxes on the ranch."

"I'll keep half of the profit from the cattle sale to pay taxes on the land and to buy new cattle when the war is finally over. But," he went on, looking at Sam with the most serious expression on his face that she had ever seen him wear, "I'll deposit the money in a United States bank instead of a Ninjago bank, and I'll move the rest of my money there as well, until this dadgum conflict is over."

"And, Sam, I suggest you do the same with your money."

The heiress gasped. Was Mr. Wu beginning to think that the Purples would win the war?

Mr. Wu sighed. "Yes, I'm becoming a bit rattled about the outcome of this war. I thought for sure the Yellows would've cleaned the plows of the Purples by now, but it hasn't happened. If the Purples do win, the current Ninjago currency won't be worth one shiny penny, and I owe it to the memory of my late brother to preserve the fruits of his years of labor while he was on earth."

"But I still believe in the Yellow cause, and that's why I'm going to donate the other half of the cattle sale profit to the Yellow Army, to help them defend Ouroborus. It's my way of trying to keep Kai and Jay safe."

Sam's mind spun with all that Mr. Wu had just said. She hated to pull all her assets out of the Ninjago Town Community Bank. The folks who worked there were good people. The bank president had even rehired Rowan Birk, the mild-mannered young man who had worked there before enlisting as a Yellow Army soldier but who had lost an arm to a minie ball at the Battle of Jamanakai Village. Thanks to having obtained employment despite his serious injury, Rowan had felt financially secure enough to propose marriage to Elly Metzger, his long-time sweetheart, and they planned to be married in a small ceremony in about two weeks.

Withdrawal of all the money Sam had inherited from her business tycoon father, Cyrus Borg, as well as the money she had indirectly inherited from the unscrupulous Morro, would hurt the bank's bottom line.

Later that night as she lay in bed, Sam decided to withdraw approximately half of her funds, the portion inherited from her father, and deposit them in a United States bank. Like Mr. Wu had said about his late brother, the heiress felt she owed it to her daddy to do what she needed to do to protect the money he worked so hard all his life to obtain. Of the remaining funds, she would donate fifty percent to the Yellow Army, like Mr. Wu was doing. But the remainder she would keep in the Ninjago Town Community Bank.

Then, before she closed her eyes for the night, she prayed for the safety of the two Garmadon Ranch soldiers who had just left that morning to face six more months of danger.


	29. Autumn Scares

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **I was too excited to wait until next week to post this chapter, so here it is!**

 **Shoutouts to StoryMaker7, guest, MMM, and lovesgod12 for posting your thoughts about the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, Kai and Jay have already left Garmadon Ranch, and now Nya is also about to leave...**

* * *

 **Chapter 29 - Autumn Scares**

 _ **Three days later…**_

Right after breakfast, the residents of Garmadon Ranch bustled about in preparation for the carriage ride which Nya and Mr. Wu would shortly take to Ninjago Town. Once there, Mr. Wu planned to board his horse and rent space for the carriage before he and the auburn-haired cowboy's wife caught the stagecoach to Barrburg, in eastern Ninjago, where the mother-to-be would be living with Ed and Edna Walker during Jay's service in the Yellow Army.

Sam was dressed in Kai's work clothes, ready to head out to the pasture after the travelers' imminent departure so that she could join Bo in tending the cattle. In the meantime, she was helping with last-minute packing.

Miss Gayle finished packing the picnic basket and handed it to Nya. "These vittles'll be fillin' ye up as ye travel," she announced. "Don't forget ye be eatin' for two!" she smiled as she turned her back to attend to another last-minute detail.

Nya returned the smile, but Sam noticed it looked more like a grimace.

 _Nya doesn't seem too happy_ , Sam thought. _Come to think of it, Nya's looking pale this morning and moving around extra slowly. Is she upset about leaving Garmadon Ranch?_

Sam watched as Nya turned and began to walk to the carriage to put the food basket in it. About halfway, the raven-haired beauty suddenly dropped the basket and fell to her knees, doubling over with a loud cry of pain.

"Nya!" Sam yelled, running over to her friend. Miss Gayle dropped her dish towel in her rush to Nya's aid. Mr. Wu, who had just finished hitching his horse to the carriage, also hurried over.

"Yerra! What ails ye, lassie?" the housekeeper asked as she knelt down beside the younger woman.

"The baby!" Nya whimpered, holding her abdomen. "I started feeling pain last night and I hoped it would go away by this morning, but it's getting worse!" She moaned.

"Oh, lassie, ye should've said something -"

Miss Gayle was interrupted by a louder moan of agony. "Ohhhh!" Nya wailed as she clutched her abdomen tighter. "What's happening to me?!" the mother-to-be frantically cried out in panic.

 _The baby shouldn't be here for at least another two months!_ Sam worriedly thought to herself.

"Ladies, get Nya back inside while I go fetch Doc Julien!" Mr. Wu called as he ran to unhitch his horse from the carriage.

Miss Gayle grabbed the ailing woman's upper arm, and Sam grabbed her other arm, and together they gently lifted her to a standing position and guided her back into the house. In the meantime, Mr. Wu quickly unhitched his horse, mounted the animal, and galloped away toward Ninjago Town to seek help.

* * *

 _ **Three hours later…**_

"Ye can come in now, Mr. Wu," Miss Gayle advised the ranch owner as she opened Nya's bedroom door to let him in.

For the past hour, ever since Mr. Wu had arrived with Doc Julien, the door had been mainly closed while he waited in the hallway, except for the times when Miss Gayle had exited and reentered the room to fetch cloths, hot water, and various other supplies for the physician.

When the ranch owner took off his hat and entered the room, Doc was working on repacking his black bag. Miss Gayle circled the double bed and seated herself on the far side of Nya, then took her hand in comfort. No doubt Sam would be comforting the patient, too, if she were still here. When Doc Julien had arrived, she had left to tend the cattle.

Nya was awake. She looked tired, but Mr. Wu was happy to see she had some color in her cheeks again.

Doc looked up from his packing. "Nya will be fine," he assured Mr. Wu. "And so will the baby."

He then spoke to the group as a whole. "But the journey to Barrburg is hereby canceled. Nya, you need to stay in bed until the birth. The baby will be born right here on Garmadon Ranch."

"But -" Nya began, but the physician cut her off.

"It's too dangerous now for you and your little one to be jostled around in a stagecoach while you cross the country. We need to make sure the baby stays in your womb for a few more weeks, so that means complete bedrest for you," Doc explained as he finished packing his bag and closed it shut. "So stay off your feet, and I'll be back in a few days to check on you."

He turned to Mr. Wu. "When I get back to town, I'll be happy to send a telegram to Jay's parents - and one to Jay - to tell them the journey is off."

"Much obliged, Doc, but I reckon I'll go back to Ninjago Town with you, so I'll take care of sending the telegrams myself while I'm there," the ranch owner replied. "Now that Barrburg is off the table, I'll start making the arrangements to take the cattle to market. I need to pay a visit to my nephew to see if he can help."

* * *

 _ **The first week in October…**_

The autumn sun shone down from a brilliant blue sky as Sam and Miss Gayle tended to the laundry just outside the back door. The blonde-haired beauty appreciated the beautiful day, but it did not alleviate her feeling of tiredness. These days, performing the weekly Monday chore made Sam a bit sad, for the pile of dirty clothing, which was quite substantial back in the spring, was now rather small - a reminder that the cowboys and Brooke were not presently living at the ranch.

What also made her a bit sad was the empty pasture in the distance. Mr. Wu had left with Lloyd and Bo about twelve days ago, herding the cattle toward the market in eastern Ninjago. He and Bo were due back at Garmadon Ranch today.

Before they left, Mr. Wu had expressed relief that Lloyd was able to take time off from his sheriff duties so he could accompany them on the journey and leave Deputy Dareth in charge. The route to the cattle market ran through the village of Corbett, which was separated from the Purple Army by only three towns. As had occurred in other towns within reach of the Purples, the ordinary, law-abiding citizens of Corbett were fleeing, leaving the less savory characters more freedom to loot businesses and rob innocent people. Mr. Wu had been confident that Lloyd's sheriff badge would insure that their passages through Corbett were uneventful on the way to and from the cattle market.

Miss Gayle picked up a damp garment in order to pin it to the clothesline, but she paused to examine the horizon. "It be lookin' like Mr. Wu is on his way back now!"

Sam finished pinning a garment and gazed in the direction indicated by the housekeeper. "I only see one horse. I wonder where Bo is."

The ladies quickly hung up the rest of the freshly washed garments in preparation to greet the ranch owner. When he finally rode up on his horse, they expected he would be pleased to have arrived home, but instead his teeth were clenched, and he seemed to be in pain.

Dispensing with his customary polite greeting, he asked, "Ladies, could you please move one of the picnic benches away from the table?"

They quickly obliged him. They did not know why he made the request, but they soon found out when he guided his horse next to the table. He eased himself off the animal onto the raised platform but almost fell down in the process.

"Mr. Wu, what happened to your ankle?" Sam inquired. The ladies observed that he treated it gingerly while sliding himself down to a sitting position on the other picnic bench.

He began to remove his shoe. "Earlier today, we were just a few miles east of Ninjago Town when I dismounted my horse to check something, but as soon as I landed on the ground, I knew I was in a bad box when my ankle started hurting like the deuce."

"When we got to Ninjago Town, we stopped at Doc Julien's office, but Misako said Doc was tending to a sick little girl out near Hibiscus Falls, so I thought it'd be best if Bo went to fetch him while I headed back to the ranch and let him treat me here."

By this time, Mr. Wu had removed his shoe and sock, and to the three of them it was quite obvious that something was amiss, for his ankle was red and swollen.

Sam quietly sighed as she and the housekeeper helped the ranch owner into the house. Yet another calamity had befallen Garmadon Ranch. Certainly they had suffered through enough scares to last them for the rest of the year.

Hadn't they?


	30. November News

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy, readers! You all are ace-high ("first class and respected," in cowboy talk)!**

 **And the comments on the previous chapter posted by lovesgod12, StoryMaker7, MMM, MasterofCupcakes, WalrusWins257, and Naruby7 are as fine as cream gravy ("very good" or "top notch" in cowboy talk)!**

 **Right now I would like to take a moment to do a favor for a family member. Measuremesky and I are related to a fanfiction author named cringelordliz. She asked me to give her a shoutout. Her favorite fandom is Kirby but she likes Ninjago, too. Please check out her story on this website and others on Wattpad.**

 **OK, back to my yarn ("story" in cowboy talk). The chapter below and the following one, which I plan to post very soon, are pivotal to this soldier tale, so I hope you enjoy them!**

 **The reference to the pie is from** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **, Chapter 38.**

 **In the chapter below, the calendar is now on the page of November...**

* * *

 **Chapter 30 - November News**

The city of Ouroborus, the main city in central Ninjago, fell into Purple hands in late October after a bloody battle. Miraculously, the 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment suffered no fatalities or serious injuries during the fight.

In the first week of November, the 5th Cavalry received reports from Yellow Army spies that the Purple Army had grown large enough to enable itself to split into three divisions and branch out from Ouroborus. One Purple division was reportedly going to keep heading straight north to the northern border of Ninjago. The second division was going to advance to the northwest to take over Ninjago's mountainous forest region.

And the third Purple division, under the command of General Chen, was rumored to be heading west to conquer Ninjago Town, the main town in a region known to be strongly pro-Yellow. This rumor was alarming to the men in the 5th Cavalry, particularly in Company C - the unit of Kai and Jay - for they called that region home.

Should the Purples succeed in these endeavors, they would end up occupying half of Ninjago and, therefore, shoring up their strength before advancing eastward toward the border with the United States. Their ultimate goal was to conquer Sasnak City, the capital of Ninjago, which was located close to the U.S. border. The Purples had no intention of invading the United States, but they wanted to make sure they had the resources to defend themselves from the United States, should the Governor of Ninjago ask the U.S. to step in and provide assistance to the Yellows.

The 5th Cavalry was currently camped about twenty miles west of Ouroborus, waiting for the Purples to make a move. For the past several nights, Kai and Jay had been assigned to reconnaissance duty by Captain Noonan, to see if the enemy was preparing to move onward, as the spies' reports were saying. The two soldiers had come back from each mission at dawn to report that nothing suspicious was going on.

Tonight, the autumn air was quite brisk as Kai and Jay once again mounted their horses and prepared to leave camp under cover of darkness, probably for another ten hours of boredom. But whereas Kai's current nightly activity seemed routine, the daylight hours that preceded tonight's mission were anything but ordinary.

Because the 5th Cavalry and Ninjago Town were both situated on the west side of Ouroborus, with no Purple Army in between them, mail delivery between them remained uninterrupted. Therefore, today Kai had received a package from Sam, which included a nice long letter with some life-changing news:

 _Garmadon Ranch, Ninjago Town  
_ _5th November 18xx_

 _My dearest Kai -_

 _Thank you, my husband, for your wonderful letter! It arrived today and uplifted my spirit. Please don't worry about giving me a gift for Christmas next month. There is just one gift I wish for, which only God can give - the gift of you being here at Garmadon Ranch in my arms, safe and sound!_

 _As always, I hope that this letter finds you well and that you are managing to keep warm, now that cold weather is here. As I mentioned in my previous letter, Miss Gayle has been teaching me how to knit, and now I am sending you the enclosed red and yellow scarf as my first finished project. I know the stitches aren't very even, so don't laugh too hard. Just say it has character, like you described my cherry pies at that supper party two summers ago, right before our engagement._

 _I will be getting more practice in knitting, for the next project is a baby blanket for Nya and Jay's little Walker, who will be born in just under a month! The blanket will be a joint Christmas gift from Miss Gayle and me, so don't tell Jay about it yet. But you can tell Jay that Nya is doing quite well after that awful scare a few weeks ago involving the baby. She can't wait until the baby is born, for then she can leave her bed and freely walk around once more._

 _After I help Miss Gayle finish the baby blanket for Nya and Jay's little one, I will work solo on another blanket for Brooke and Cole's little one. You may know that the Hences have decided to spend the entire winter in Ogacich and have the baby there, due to the hazards of traveling during snowstorm season and the continuing Purple threat. Brooke can also avail herself of the many helping hands of her large family._

 _I am uncertain if my baby blanket will reach Brooke and Cole, now that Ouroborus is in Purple hands, but there is still a possibility that the postal system can reroute mail destined for places outside Ninjago. Brooke's last letter to us said that Cole is doing so much better now. He works alongside his father-in-law at the piano company, and she has found an opportunity to make money as a seamstress. The extra money is allowing them to donate funds and supplies to the Yellow cause._

 _And according to what Zane wrote to us in his last letter, we shall be welcoming yet another new resident of Garmadon Ranch when the war is over! Celeste was present when the doctor removed Zane's final bandages, and the first thing he said was a question directed at her: "Will you marry me?"_

 _She, of course, accepted his proposal._ _After her schooling is finished next month, they will wed in Cefran and if the war is still going on in January, they plan to return to Sasnak City where he will reenlist as a military instructor, since his jaw is not yet internally healed enough to withstand another blow in a battle._

 _I wish to continue the topic of new residents of Garmadon Ranch. Once I send the baby blanket to the Hences in Ogacich, I will start knitting another one. And this blanket will be for OUR baby! Yes, my dearest Kai, you will be a DADDY next June!_

 _Doc Julien confirmed this today when I was in town with Miss Gayle. I went to see Doc because I've been feeling very tired and a bit nauseous and have had my suspicions as to why. Obviously we were blessed in early September, right before you reenlisted. I am so thrilled that finally, after a year of trying, we will soon welcome the arrival of a little one!_

 _It is getting late, so I will close this letter. Miss Gayle and Nya send their best wishes. So does Mr. Wu, who says he's feeling pretty kedge, despite his broken ankle. Please tell Jay I said howdy, and please keep yourself safe as you all whup those Purples, so that you all may come home soon and we can decide together on a name for our future little leaf on the family tree. Blaze and Blossom and I miss you!_

 _I love you, cowboy!_

 _I am, as I ever was and ever shall be, yours,  
_ _Sam_

The red and yellow scarf sent by Sam was now wrapped around Kai's neck and tucked under his uniform collar. She had obviously spritzed it with her strawberry fragrance before she packaged it up, for he could detect the scent with each breath he took. The letter, which had also absorbed a bit of the fruity aroma, was now tucked safely in an inner pocket of his black and yellow winter slicker, issued by the Yellow Army. He wanted to keep the letter close to him so he could read the happy news again and again.

 _I'm actually going to be a father!_ he marveled.

He smiled at the memory of that early September night just before he left for reenlistment. At the time, he had sensed a specialness about the evening, and not only because it was the last night for a while that he and Sam would spend together.

"Have you thought of any names for the baby yet?" Jay inquired, interrupting Kai's thoughts as they rode their horses past the camp guard and out into the night.

Kai rolled his eyes. "Jay, I've only known the news for four hours!"

"Well, keep in mind that James would be a mighty fine middle name for a boy," the auburn-haired soldier teased.

When they had ridden their horses about a quarter mile beyond the camp, Kai and Jay stopped their idle chatter and focused on their mission.

They rode on the dirt trail in silence for a few miles. Upon reaching a certain oak tree, they guided the horses off the road, as they had done for the past several nights, and steered them into the woods that ran alongside.

About halfway into their journey through the woods to the outskirts of the Purple Army's camp, they came across one of their landmarks, an abandoned farmhouse which backed up to the woods but which faced a meadow. Tonight it looked the same as it did on other nights, except…

...two horses stood by one side of the house.

Jay and Kai, having not yet emerged from the woodsy area into the open area, spotted the horses at the same time and looked at each other. They drew their guns and slowly dismounted their animals. They trusted Flame and Wisp enough not to run away. Kai threw his coil of rope over his left shoulder, in case it was needed to truss up a man...or men…

Quietly, Jay whispered that he would go around the far side of the house to the front door, and Kai whispered back that he would get to the front door by following the side that the horses were on. Once they met at the front of the house, they'd both burst through the front door together.

Keeping low and close to the wall of the house, Kai crept along its length, from the back corner to the front corner. The horses were quiet as Kai passed by them. Once he reached the front corner, he peeked around and waited for Jay to show his face around the opposite corner, then they would approach the front door together.

Kai waited, but Jay did not appear.

 _What's taking you so long, Jay?_ Kai wondered to himself.

Kai decided to retrace his steps to the back of the house, then go the way Jay had gone. He kept low and close to the same side wall he had just traversed, and then he kept low and close to the back wall, slowly creeping along the length of it. When he peeked around the corner to look down the third wall before traversing it, he saw an alarming sight.

Jay was sprawled on the ground, face down and unconscious.

Behind him, Kai heard a strange noise. But before he could turn around to investigate, he felt intense pain on the back of his skull.

Kai fell to the ground, unconscious.


	31. A Dark November Night

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Who's excited for Day of the Departed? I am!**

 **Hey, FirstFandomFangirl, lovesgod12, MMM, WalrusWins257, MasterofCupcakes, and StoryMaker7! Thanks for your comments on Chapter 30! Your support warms my heart!**

 **I'm not sure when I'll post the next chapter after this one, but I'm aiming for mid-November.**

 **In the chapter below, Kai and Jay find out who else is at the abandoned farmhouse...**

* * *

 **Chapter 31 - A Dark November Night**

Something kept poking Kai's ribs. The groggy Yellow soldier was annoyed because the poking was waking him up, and he was not ready to waken.

"Wake up, you Yellow scum!" a gravelly voice ordered.

As Kai struggled to open his eyes. the last seconds of his last memory flooded back to him...seeing Jay on the ground...the strange noise...the intense pain in his head.

His head still hurt, but he found he could not move his arms to feel his injury. His wrists were bound behind his back with rope - probably from the coil he had been carrying. He was lying on his stomach on the floor of a dim room illuminated only by a single candle. He assumed the room was inside the farmhouse that he and Jay had been circling.

The poking was being done by the foot of the person ordering him around. In the dim light, Kai could see that the color of the person's winter slicker was purple. Another Purple soldier was leaning against the far wall of the room, calmly smoking a pipe. The aroma of the pungent tobacco filled the room.

"Sit up!" the gravelly voice ordered.

Clumsily, Kai brought himself to a sitting position against the nearest wall without the use of his hands or arms. In the process, he saw that Jay was already awake and sitting against the wall. Jay was trussed up just like he was.

Kai and Jay looked at each other. Jay's face displayed worry.

Now that he was situated, Kai had the opportunity to study the Purple soldiers. The one with the gravelly voice wore the insignia of a corporal. The pipe-smoking soldier was a sergeant, one rank above the corporal.

"Looks like we all were assigned to do reconnaissance tonight on each other," the raspy-voiced corporal chuckled.

Kai and Jay remained silent. Kai glared at the corporal. This did not go unnoticed by the Purple soldier.

"Don't give me that look, Yellow. Else I might give you back one of your bullets, used," the corporal smirked. He reached into his winter slicker and pulled out Kai's gun, twirling it in his hand a few times. "I have to say that you cowboys have some fine weapons. They'll make a nice addition to our collection." The Purple soldiers had rifled through the holsters and pockets of the Yellows in their unconscious state.

The pipe-smoking sergeant, who had been leaning against the wall, straightened up and walked over to them. "And in case you're wondering how we know you're cowboys," he sneered, "we enjoyed reading your letters." From a pocket of his uniform, he produced two envelopes. "We particularly enjoyed reading the one addressed to you, Smith, telling you you're gonna be a daddy!"

"You dirty dog! Give that back!" Kai hissed, clenching his fists and wishing his arms were free to take a swing at the sergeant.

Both Purples laughed. "What's the matter?" the sergeant continued. "Don't want anyone to know it took you a whole year to plant a seed?" The men continued to laugh while Kai gritted his teeth, frustrated that God's timing for a happy event in his life had been deliberately misconstrued for the purpose of humiliating him.

"Don't worry, Smith," the sergeant assured Kai as he finished laughing. "SHE obviously thought you were man enough, if she gave you this nice piece of jewelry." And with that, the sergeant reached into another pocket of his uniform and held up Kai's wedding ring.

With his hands tied behind his back, Kai felt the ring finger of his left hand with his right hand. The wedding ring was indeed missing. He looked over at Jay. Jay frowned. His wedding ring was missing, too.

"You know, Smith," the sergeant continued, "it sounds like your woman's not too good at baking or knitting, but with all the practice she got at a certain other activity this past year, I'd like to test her skill!"

At that moment, Kai wanted nothing more than to wipe the smirk off the sergeant's face. He quickly swung his legs underneath his body, which then allowed him to propel himself into the lower legs of the sergeant, knocking him over like a bowling pin. The pipe flew out of the Purple soldier's hand and landed a few feet away.

The momentum of Kai's action caused the cowboy to roll until he ended up on his back. When he stopped rolling, he found himself facing the barrel of his own gun.

"Looks like we got us a hothead here, Sarge," the gravel-voiced corporal announced, cocking the gun and holding it close to Kai's face.

The sergeant got back on his feet and retrieved his pipe. "We'll have to make sure we put that in our report when we turn in these Yellow pieces of waste. Colonel Doolverr loves the feisty kind of prisoner. Gives him a chance to show his creativity in cruelty," he chuckled. "For example, here's something he might do." With that, he kicked Kai's side with force. Kai winced in pain.

Jay spoke up in an attempt to distract the Purples from harming his friend further. "So where are we going?"

"Well, Walker, right now we're taking you back to camp with us," the sergeant replied as he prepared his pipe for smoking once again. "Then in the morning, you'll no doubt be heading south to Jamanakai Village and good ol' Kryptarium Prison."

The corporal put Kai's gun away in his pocket. "Shall we put 'em on the horses now, Sarge?"

The sergeant nodded. "Yep. We already got their names and ranks from their letters."

"All right then. Get up, Yellow," the gravelly-voiced corporal snarled. With both hands he grabbed Kai's winter slicker and unceremoniously yanked the prisoner up to a standing position. The red and yellow scarf, knitted by Sam and tucked inside Kai's uniform collar, caught the attention of the enemy captor.

"Is this the scarf she knitted?" the corporal asked, taking hold of it and yanking it off Kai's neck. Kai grimaced at the discomfort of the skin burn caused by the quick sliding of the rough wool fabric.

The corporal detected the strawberry scent of the scarf and held it to his nose, taking in a deep breath. "Mmm. Best scent I've sniffed in months. Now that I know where she lives, maybe I'll go visit her and sniff her in person!" he chuckled.

That set off Kai again. With all his might, he rammed his shoulder into the corporal. Both of them fell to the ground.

The sergeant, who had just lifted Jay to his feet, quickly reached for his gun and hammered its handle onto Kai's head while he was sprawled on his stomach. The Yellow soldier groaned, then remained still.

"Thanks, Sarge," said the corporal, slowly rising to his feet and dusting himself off.

The sergeant grinned as he re-holstered his gun. "That oughta put the hothead out of commission for a while. Now drag him outside so we can load these Yellow scumbags on their horses. Move, Walker!" he ordered Jay, shoving him forward.

Jay scowled but did not resist. He figured he'd better avoid injury to himself in order to keep an eye out for his unconscious friend's well being.

Once they all were outside, the two Purples hoisted Jay onto Wisp. "By the way, Walker," the sergeant smirked, "Smith's letter said his wife was knitting a blanket for your baby for Christmas. She said not to tell you."


	32. November Sorrow

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy Thanksgiving Day tomorrow to all the readers in the USA! It's one of my favorite holidays.**

 **In addition to tomorrow, today is a noteworthy day in my personal realm. Today marks exactly ONE YEAR since I published the first chapter of this tale,** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Soldier**_ **.**

 **I know I haven't regularly updated this cowboy story, but I do promise to finish it at some point. To those of you who are authors as well as readers: don't your stories feel almost like they are your children? You struggle and sweat to raise/write them, and when they are grown/completed, you simultaneously feel satisfied and sad? I kinda feel like that with my stories, so rest assured that I'm gonna keep going with this one, too!**

 **I wish to extend a shoutout to ShinyShiny9, who this week is marking the one-year anniversary of her story,** _ **The Fantastic Mr. Walker**_ **.**

 **A big howdy goes to janeabigail01, who recently faved me as an author and who also faved my first cowboy yarn,** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **. Thank you so much!**

 **And I am thankful to StoryMaker7, MasterofCupcakes, lovesgod12, MMM, Naruby7, and WalrusWins257 for your Chapter 31 comments. I love them all!**

 **In the chapter below, readers of my story** _ **The Fire Within: The Fire Witch Incident**_ **may recognize that I included a whiff of that story's Chapter 4, in which Sam learns that Kai is missing and Lloyd comforts her.**

 **As you can tell from the chapter title below, the mood of the Garmadon Ranch residents is not an upbeat one by the chapter's end...**

* * *

 **Chapter 32 - November Sorrow**

 _ **The third week in November...**_

As had been done for the last few weekly errand runs, the Garmadon Ranch's housekeeper, Miss Gayle, had driven herself and Mr. Wu into Ninjago Town today using the carriage.

Sam remained at the ranch, not only to keep the pregnant and bedridden Nya company, but also because her own pregnancy was causing her to constantly feel fatigued.

Miss Gayle had dropped off Mr. Wu at Doc Julien's red brick bungalow on the corner of Main and First, where the kind doctor practiced medicine on the lower level and lived on the upper level with his wife of one year, the former Misako Garmadon. Doc was going to take a look at the ranch owner's broken ankle, to see how the healing process was progressing.

Mr. Wu planned to stay at the physician's office until Miss Gayle returned from her shopping to retrieve him there, after which they would go to the telegraph office to obtain any telegrams for Garmadon Ranch residents, as well as to learn the latest news regarding the war.

The housekeeper finished up her shopping at Ninjago Town's general store. After loading her packages in the back of the carriage, she adjusted her scarf to keep warm against the blustery breeze of the gray, cloudy afternoon. She climbed up into the carriage and urged Mr. Wu's horse toward the physician's office.

As she rode along, she silently noted that the yellow bunting on the Main Street storefronts, which had hung proudly and cheerily in the spring, now flapped like torn and dirty rags in the chilly wind.

But the most disturbing sight awaited the housekeeper as she passed the McAllister Saloon. She spotted Mr. Wu sitting on the curb with his crutches scattered around him. And he was drinking out of a whiskey bottle.

Immediately she halted the horse and practically fell out of the carriage in her haste to reach her boss. "Yerra, Mr. Wu! What ye be doing, sittin' out here in the cold and drinkin' whiskey?!" she exclaimed.

So far, the whiskey had only had a small effect on the white-bearded rancher. "Miss Gayle," he announced after taking a swig from the bottle, "when I tell you why I'm drinking, you'll want to be drinking, too."

"What happened?" she cried out, sitting down next to him and placing her hand on his shoulder.

Mr. Wu reached into an inner pocket of his coat for another bottle of whiskey, and he handed it to her. "While Doc Julien was looking at my ankle," he explained, "one of Theodore Grant's apprentices from the telegraph office burst in. The young man said that Grant had seen me go into the bungalow and thought I should see a telegram from Captain Noonan right away."

"And what did it say, Mr. Wu?" the housekeeper asked, alarmed. Mr. Wu was indeed acting very strangely today.

Mr. Wu sighed. "Jay and Kai are believed to have been captured by the Purples," he said lifelessly. He handed her the telegram and drank once more from the bottle.

Her mouth agape, Miss Gayle read the telegram. According to Captain Noonan, the two soldiers from Garmadon Ranch never returned from a recent regular nightly reconnaissance mission. The next night, under cover of darkness, the Captain sent Rusty McKanna from the Double S Ranch and another soldier on the reconnaissance route. Outside the abandoned farmhouse, they located the missing cowboys' hats, inscribed with their names. Inside, they found bits of rope to indicate they were no doubt trussed up when they were taken away.

Captain Noonan concluded the telegram by extending condolences to all the residents of Garmadon Ranch, especially the soldiers' wives.

"Mo Dhia!" she whispered in a low voice. She knew that the Purples did not treat their prisoners very well. She feared what the boys might be going through right now - if they were still alive at this point.

And then she thought about their wives.

"It's Robert's fate, all over again!" she quietly uttered, her eyes filling with tears at the remembrance of her beloved fiance, who perished years ago while fighting for their home country far away. The young women back at the ranch, still blissfully unaware of their husbands' dire situation, were no doubt chatting at this very moment in Nya's bedroom, cautiously discussing plans and hopes for their future families after the war. Daring to be hopeful that their men would one day return home and begin to teach their children to be fine, upstanding citizens of Ninjago.

She looked at Mr. Wu with watery eyes, and he looked back at her with his piercing blue eyes. "There's more bad news," he said in the same monotone voice.

"What is it?" she choked, wondering what news could possibly make this day any worse.

"Our Yellows keep getting pushed westward from Ouroborus by the advancing Purples. The enemy's next objective is the area of Camp Goldland. But instead of defending it, the Yellow boys are going to make a circuit around the north side of Ouroborus and defend eastern Ninjago and Sasnak City. They're abandoning western Ninjago." Mr. Wu took an extra large swig from his whiskey bottle.

Miss Gayle's eyes widened. "Yerra! Does that mean -"

"Yep," he interrupted. "No one's defending Ninjago Town from the Purples."

Miss Gayle opened the whiskey bottle she was holding and took a large swig.

* * *

 _ **Late that night…**_

Alone in the dark of her bedroom, Sam huddled in her bed under several blankets, but she still felt the chill from the November night's weather. She wondered if she'd ever feel warm again. The night felt cold, and so did the whole world.

The evening had started out a bit strangely. Miss Gayle and Mr. Wu had come home from Ninjago Town with liquor on their breath. They acted a bit drunk, for they exhibited a demeanor of false cheeriness. They informed the young women that Doc Julien, his wife Misako, and Misako's son Sheriff Lloyd Garmadon would be joining them for supper in a few short hours.

As always, it was nice to see the Juliens and Sheriff Lloyd, but it seemed odd for them to come for supper on just a few hours' notice, and for them to travel 45 minutes from town on such a chilly, breezy night. And when they arrived, they also seemed to pretend at lightheartedness.

After supper, the underlying reason for the visit became apparent as they all relocated from the dining room to Nya's bedroom under the guise of enjoying a dessert with the bedridden young woman. Sam was instructed to sit in the bedroom guest chair while they all partook of the apple pie. Then, with Misako seated on the double bed next to Nya, and Miss Gayle's hand on Sam's shoulder, Mr. Wu and Doc Julien told the young women the news of their husbands' disappearance at the hands of the Purple Army.

Nya had immediately fainted. Doc hurriedly reached into his medical bag for the smelling salts. It had suddenly became clear to Sam that Doc had been invited tonight to manage any medical emergency that the pregnant women might suffer as a consequence of learning the terrible news about their loved ones.

Sam had felt a sensation of paralysis begin in her chest and flow down to her feet.

She reckoned her face must have turned pale, for she remembered Lloyd's admonition. "Breathe, Sam," he urged.

Sam then took a deep breath. It had helped, but not much.

Now here she was in her own room, hours later, with her world turned upside down.

 _Am I a widow?_ she wondered. She felt frustrated at being deprived of the merciful closure she could be experiencing had her dearest Kai been killed outright on the battlefield.

She held her hand to her abdomen. _Will our baby never know its father?_

Sam thought about Jenny, whom she and Nya and Brooke knew from working together during their days as saloon girls. Jenny and Michael Donlan from the Double S Ranch had just become sweethearts right as the war broke out, and they had written to each other up until the Battle of Jamanakai Village occurred, when Michael disappeared.

Though Michael's fate was unknown, Jenny felt in her heart that Michael was dead, and she grieved for the cowboy. When Jenny was not serving drinks at McAllister's, she dressed herself in black.

Sam searched her heart. She felt that somewhere out there, her beloved Kai was still alive. But for how long?

The tears flowed into her pillow as she cried herself to sleep.


	33. Departures

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Happy 2017, everyone! Hey, did you hear that Legoland Florida has a new Ninjago ride? It sounds awesome!**

 **For me, the end of 2016 was filled with things which distracted me from Ninjago Fan Fiction: Christmas, Facebook, my father breaking his hip and his wrist (fortunately he's recovering nicely now!), and other items. That is why my email inbox is now filled with nearly 100 notifications of new updates to the stories I follow. I PLAN TO READ THEM ALL! It just might take a little time! :)**

 **I would like to thank many people:**

 **HUS-Chan for fav-ing me as an author,**

 **DynaLover101 and HUS-Chan for fav-ing this story since my last update,**

 **Magic Writing Dragon and HUS-Chan for fav-ing** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **,**

 **and**

 **lovesgod12, MMM, Naruby7, WalrusWins257, MasterofCupcakes, and StoryMaker7 for commenting on the previous chapter of this tale!**

 **In the chapter below, several references exist to events which occurred in my story** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **. Kai and Sam's time spent in a Noscut jail cell is narrated in Chapters 13 & 14, and Chapters 33 and beyond describe the week following their rescue from Morro.**

 **Now that the Purple Army is heading toward an undefended western Ninjago, the civilians must decide what they are going to do...**

* * *

 **Chapter 33 - Departures**

 _ **Early in December…**_

Due to the impending takeover of western Ninjago by the Purple Army, many citizens of Ninjago Town and the surrounding countryside were planning to leave the area.

Yesterday, the Garmadon Ranch residents had said their goodbyes to their good friend and neighbor, Senora Garcia of the Double S Ranch. Senor Garcia had not wished his wife to remain in the area for the impending arrival of the Purples. Consequently, he had arranged for her to accompany friends of theirs, a married couple from Ninjago Town, who were planning to evacuate today to Skeleton Territory.

The gardener of Garmadon Ranch had also said goodbye yesterday. Bo had decided to head to the mountainous forested region of northwestern Ninjago, where a man could easily hide in the boulder-filled terrain.

The remaining Garmadon Ranch residents discussed among themselves about whether to stay or leave. Despite the danger of becoming civilian prisoners of the Purple Army, there was great reluctance to depart.

For Sam, going away meant separating from the beautiful countryside which she had embraced as her home for nearly one and a half years now. Going away also meant abandoning many happy reminders of her beloved Kai, such as the picnic table outside the kitchen where they first enjoyed refreshments together upon returning from their harrowing kidnapping ordeal. And the front porch where they had sneaked kisses after that memorable supper party, before Miss Gayle caught them. And the lawn on which their wedding reception was held.

And going away from Garmadon Ranch meant she might never be able to return.

But there was new life inside her now - Kai's heir - and Sam had to think about what was best for their child. The baby deserved to grow up in freedom, but if the believers in the monarchy won the war, freedom would become a relic of Ninjago's past.

The others also concluded that retreating would be best. Even Mr. Wu, whose brother had built Garmadon Ranch, felt that by selling the cattle, he had preserved enough of his sibling's assets to start up a new ranch, which he would also call Garmadon Ranch.

The group ultimately planned to retreat to the Skeleton Territory town of Noscut, a village which had given Sam both sweet and terrible memories. It was there in a dank jail cell that she and Kai had revealed their love for each other. But the reason they were being held there in the first place was due to Morro, her now-deceased former boss who had kidnapped the young couple in his quest to obtain her daddy's wealth.

On the group's way to Noscut, however, they would pause at the home of Miss Gayle's sister's family in Hibiscus Falls. Because Nya still had not yet given birth, they thought they would try traveling only an hour away and once there, they could reassess how much additional travel she could stand. In addition, Miss Gayle would have the opportunity to say goodbye to her sibling, for she planned to remain with her honorary "family" from Garmadon Ranch and care for them.

They aimed to set out on their journey in two more days after they finished packing what they could reasonably take with them and deciding what to do with things they could not take. Since Kai and Sam's cottage was located in a secluded place, in a wooded corner of the ranch next to the Ninjago River, they began to hide some of the items there.

But shouts of "Wu!" and loud knocks on the main house door at sunrise woke them up and quickly altered their plans.

The unexpected noise caused Sam to swiftly rise from her bed and slip her arms through the sleeves of her wrapper. Grabbing her gun from her bedside drawer, she hurried down the stairs in the early morning light. She reached the front door right behind Mr. Wu, who had rapidly limped toward the ruckus carrying his own gun, and Miss Gayle who, though she looked sleepy, clutched a kitchen knife.

"It's Francisco!" Mr. Wu called out after peering through the side window. He lowered his weapon and unlocked the door.

Indeed, on the front porch stood their neighbor, Senor Francisco Garcia of the Double S Ranch. In the dim light they could see his wife sitting and waiting in their carriage. Both wore worried looks on their faces.

"Francisco! What brings you here at dawn? And why is Rosa with you? I thought you were taking her to Ninjago Town yesterday!" Mr. Wu exclaimed with concern in his voice.

"My old friend, I have bad news to share with you," Senor Garcia began. "Yesterday I did indeed bring Rosa to the home of our friends, the Williamses, and spent the night there in order to see them off this morning. But Senor and Senora Williams kept us awake all night arguing between themselves, for she was having second thoughts about leaving. And then Deputy Dareth knocked on the door. He said he and Lloyd were warning all the townsfolk that the Purples were reported to be located only five miles away from the town limits. That is the bad news."

Senor Garcia began to make his way back down the front porch steps while continuing to talk. "Senora Williams still could not be convinced to leave, however, so I decided right then and there to take Rosa to Skeleton Territory myself. She and I are stopping by our home so I can gather some clothing for myself before we embark on our journey. I am sad to leave my cattle to fend for themselves and face the likelihood of losing them, but there is no one I can call on to tend to them at this point. You were smart, my friend, to sell your cattle in the Ninjago marketplace when you did. My potential buyer in Skeleton Territory acted too slowly and now time has run out."

By this time the Double S Ranch owner had climbed back into the carriage next to his wife. As he jerked the reins to urge on his horses, he called, "Vaya con Dios, my friends!"

"Vaya con Dios!" they all called back, watching from the doorway as the carriage disappeared from sight.

Suddenly Mr. Wu shouted "Tarnation!" and startled Miss Gayle and Sam.

"Beggin' your pardon," the ranch owner said more softly, "but I still can't believe those Purple scoundrels reached Ninjago Town so fast! I reckoned they'd try to cover as much ground as they could before the snow came, but I surely thought we'd have more time to vamoose," he muttered.

He sighed. "We'd best get moving so we can leave in an hour. Whatever we can't finish, we can't finish. I hope that Lloyd, Misako, and Doc will be all right," he added, pressing his lips together with worry.

"They'll be doin' fine," Miss Gayle assured her boss, trying to hide the quaver in her voice. "A sheriff and a doctor are happiest when they be servin' their town. And the Purple Army be treatin' them fine, for those sleeveens be needin' their help. And ye know Misako - she be doin' no such thing as leavin' her men behind."

With wry smiles, Sam and Mr. Wu nodded in agreement.

* * *

 _ **Thirty minutes later…**_

Upstairs on the second floor of the main house, Sam finished packing her steamer trunk, then left her bedroom and walked across the hall to Nya's room.

"I'm here to help you finish up, Nya," Sam called quietly as she knocked on the closed door. "Then we'll help you climb into the little makeshift bed in the carriage."

Sam proceeded to open the door, but to her surprise, Nya had remained in her bed, still wearing her nightclothes. The raven-haired woman's face displayed a scared look.

"Nya! What's the matter?" a shocked Sam exclaimed.

"I - I think the baby's coming!" She lifted her blankets to show Sam the evidence.

 _Sakes alive! Why must the baby come now?_ Sam thought to herself after taking a look. But she forced herself to be calm for Nya's sake, and she simply said, "Don't worry, honey, I'll get Miss Gayle."

Sam hurried back out of the room and down the stairs to the water pump outside the kitchen, where she knew Miss Gayle was collecting water to take for themselves and for Blaze and Flash, the Australian shepherd dogs.

 _There's no way we're going anywhere now_ , she thought on her way down.


	34. New Life

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Many thanks to WalrusWins257, Fairycakeater, MMM, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, and Naruby7 for commenting on the previous chapter!**

 **And now I am excited to present to you the chapter in which baby Walker arrives! The action below takes place seven hours after the end of the previous chapter...**

* * *

 **Chapter 34 - New Life**

 _ **Seven hours later…**_

"Ladies!" Mr. Wu hollered from the foot of the stairs up toward Nya's bedroom. "They're coming!"

As they attended to the raven-haired woman, Miss Gayle and Sam managed to hear his warning in between the sounds of Nya's heavy breathing and moaning as she endured the pain of childbirth labor. The housekeeper-turned-midwife and her blonde assistant looked at each other.

"Go with him," the housekeeper urged the younger woman, knowing what she was thinking. "I be handlin' things till ye get back."

Sam nodded. Mr. Wu was an honorary father to her, Kai, and all the young men and women of Garmadon Ranch, and she wished to stand next to him and face whatever peril was approaching their home.

Before she went downstairs, however, she paused to stop at her own bedroom and retrieve her firearm, the weapon which had seen action 40 years earlier during the snake invasion while it was owned by Bansha, the legendary markswoman.

 _Once again, Ninjago Town has been invaded by slimy snakes of another kind,_ Sam grimly thought as she hid the gun in her skirt pocket.

Mr. Wu was about to limp out the door with his cane onto the front porch when he heard Sam's footsteps clamber down the wooden staircase.

"Sam, you don't need to come outside," he told her when he realized what she was doing. "No one knows what in tarnation those scalawags are capable of."

"They took Kai, Mr. Wu," the young woman responded matter-of-factly, throwing her shawl over her shoulders. "My greatest fear came to pass, so I don't think I'm capable of being afraid of anything else in this world."

The ranch owner slowly nodded in understanding. He opened the door for her, and they walked outside. They could hear Blaze and Flash barking from behind the house, no doubt pulling against the chains that tethered them to the oak tree near the picnic table. Mr. Wu wisely made sure to secure them so that they would not make nuisances of themselves and provoke the ire of any Purple soldier with an itchy trigger finger.

Sam helped Mr. Wu climb down the steps of the front porch. They watched a sea of purple uniforms swarm in the distance, slowly but surely getting closer.

After a short while, they observed a smaller group of Purple Army riders approaching the main house. Some riders bore purple banners. Others appeared to be pointing their weapons at the ranch owner and the young woman.

The advance Purple group finally halted a few yards away from the two Garmadon Ranch residents. The leader pulled in front of the others and spoke to them. "This property is being claimed in the name of the rightful king of Ninjago," he announced.

Sam wondered why the blond-haired leader looked at her peculiarly. Suddenly she realized that she recognized him.

"Jake Clouse?" she asked incredulously. She could scarcely believe she was looking at the same suitor she had rejected years ago, on the advice of her daddy. Though his features were generally the same as she remembered, his chin was more chiseled, and his eyes were more...iniquitous.

"Good afternoon, Sam," he said, a grin spreading across his face once the young woman's exclamation had verified for him that she indeed was the girl he had courted years ago. "It's nice to see you again after all this time. I understand you got married and so you are now Samantha Smith. Is this your husband?"

Sam frowned. "No, Jake. This is Mr. Wu, my husband's employer and the owner of this ranch. You would know better than I would, Jake, where my husband is. Your people captured him while he was on a reconnaissance mission."

They were interrupted by a sentry riding up on a horse. "Announcing the arrival of General Chen!" the soldier called out.

All the purple-clad men saluted as a horse carrying a short-looking, cigar-smoking man with long sideburns trotted up to where Jake stood. He stopped his animal and saluted back to his subordinates. They dropped their hands from their foreheads back to their sides but remained still, except for the sentry, who dismounted his horse.

Chen dismounted his own horse and handed the reins to the sentry before walking up to stand next to Jake. He continued to chomp his cigar. Sam detected the aroma of alcohol.

The general looked at Mr. Wu, then looked at Sam. Keeping his eyes on her, he grinned and took the cigar out his mouth. "So, Capt- I mean, MAJOR Clouse, why don't you introduce me to our newest prisoners?" He wiggled his eyebrows at the blonde.

Sam had gotten over her morning sickness a few weeks ago, but the lecherous stare from the Purple general made her feel queasy once again.

Jake made brief introductions among Mr. Wu and Sam and General Chen.

The superior officer ignored the ranch owner and focused on the young woman. "It is a great pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear," he said, taking her hand and giving the back of it a kiss, in the traditional way women in the courts of the king were greeted, back when the ancient monarchy existed.

"The pleasure is not mutual," she replied tersely, yanking her hand back.

"Oooh, feisty! I like that in a woman. I'll bet you like that quality in my daughter, don't you, Clouse?"

Before Jake could respond, the sound of an especially loud blood-curdling scream from Nya within the house reached their ears outside.

 _Miss Gayle surely needs my help now,_ Sam realized. She glared at the two Purple officers. "If you'll excuse me, there is a baby being born inside the house right now, and my help is needed!" She gathered her skirt, turned on her heel, and ran back up the stairs into the house.

Jake was about to run after her but Chen stopped him. "Let her go for now. We'll have a talk with her later. But you" - he nodded toward Mr. Wu - "are coming with us. You got a room in there where we can talk privately?"

"My office," Mr. Wu replied, pointing his cane toward the door.

"It might have been your office," Chen chuckled, pushing the ranch owner toward the porch steps, "but it's MY office now! I've decided that your ranch will be the perfect place for the Third Division of the Purple Army to camp for the winter, once we build a few telegraph poles between here and town."

"Yes," Chen continued, smiling as they walked up the steps. "Lots of room to spread out, lots of cattle over yonder for tasty steak dinners, and a nice warm brick house to serve as the officers' headquarters."

 _And a nice opportunity to be 'social' with a pretty lady,_ he thought to himself.

* * *

Within the next hour, a baby boy was born on the upstairs level of the Garmadon Ranch main house.

As Sam watched with a lump in her throat at witnessing God's beautiful miracle of birth, Miss Gayle laid the precious bundle in his mama's arms before wiping her eyes with her sleeve. The auburn wisps of hair on the baby's head left no doubt that he was his father's son. The father who was sadly absent.

"Howdy, Edward James Walker," an exhausted Nya softly welcomed him with tears rolling down her cheeks - tears of happiness for the arrival of her child, and tears of sadness that her beloved Jay was not around to share the special moment.

"Edward is the name of your granddaddy," she whispered to her son, gently stroking his tiny ear. "And James is the name of your daddy." Nya's voice gave a little hitch of sadness at the thought of her missing husband. "Your daddy and I decided to call you EJ for short," she added quickly.

The baby wiggled his arm and grazed his mama's chin, as if in response to say that the name was acceptable to him.


	35. The Arrival at the Prison

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **In my part of the USA yesterday, when it was still February, we had spring-like temperatures, tornado warnings, and hail. Today it is March 1 and we are back to experiencing snow showers and wind chills in the teens. Very confusing! :)**

 **Last weekend I saw the Lego Batman movie, which was awesome, but one of the highlights of my cinema experience that day was seeing a trailer for a certain Lego movie coming out on September 22 of this year...so exciting to see the ninja on the big screen!**

 **I want to send hugs of appreciation to FirstFandomFangirl, Fairycakeater, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, MMM, Naruby7, WalrusWins257, MasterofCupcakes, and StoryMaker7 for commenting on the previous chapter of this story! As Cole might say, "You rock my world!" :D**

 **I wish to give a big shout-out to KaiLover911 and Purplecatlover93, who faved this story and faved me as an author. My heart is warmed and I thank you SO much!**

 **The last three chapters have been focused on Sam, but let us find out what has been happening to Kai. The chapter below takes place just a few days after the end of Chapter 31, when Kai and Jay were captured by the Purple Army...**

* * *

 **Chapter 35 - The Arrival at the Prison**

 _ **Late November…**_

Even though the winter season in southern Ninjago was known to be fairly mild, Jamanakai Village was experiencing one of the chilliest Novembers that any villager could remember. The cold wind added extra misery to the prisoners of war who had just arrived at the Purple Army's nearby Kryptarium Prison on the transport wagon after a bumpy three-day ride from Ouroborus. Their route took them across the battlefield on which the Yellows had received their first embarrassing defeat of the war back in the summer.

In the distance, Kai could see the wooded ridge from which he and the dozen or so men from Company C of the 5th Ninjago Cavalry spied on the Purples during that disastrous reconnaissance mission last summer, when Zane received a severe slash on his face from the sword of a Purple lieutenant.

Once the group of captured Yellow soldiers had disembarked from the wagon and had been herded through the main prison gate by Purple guards, they were instructed to line up in front of one of the several wooden buildings, then told to sit down on the chilly ground and wait until their name was called by a sentry. The prisoners, each wearing wrist shackles, were not allowed to speak with each other. A half dozen guards bearing rifles stood around nearby, ready to enforce that edict.

In spite of their grim circumstances, Kai couldn't help but smile at Jay's facial expression. The auburn-haired cowboy could talk a donkey's hind leg off, but now he was pressing his lips together tightly to make himself keep quiet. Kai was thankful that he and Jay were at least sitting next to each other, even if they could not verbally communicate.

One by one, each Yellow soldier in the line was summoned into the building as a sentry periodically opened the building door from the inside and called out each man's name. After a few minutes, one prisoner would exit the building without his shackles, accompanied by an armed guard, and be escorted through the interior stockade gate while the next man's name was called.

Kai and Jay watched as every other prisoner was processed, leaving them as the last two arrivals from Ouroborus to remain sitting outside the building. Jay idly drummed his fingers on the ground, attempting to relieve his nervous tension as he waited. Kai took a deep breath and sighed, trying not to worry that the news of his capture might distress his beloved Sam to the point of affecting her health or that of the child she now carried in her womb.

"You Jaunes seen much action?" The question startled both cowboys. The voice came from the lone Purple guard remaining outside to watch over them. The other guards had been assigned to other duties, now that most of the Yellow detainees had been placed in the stockade.

Kai and Jay looked up from their seated positions at the owner of the voice. The Purple soldier, who wore the insignia of a sergeant, maintained a strong grip on his rifle, but he seemed friendly. Perhaps that was due to the smile on his face, or the interesting dialect of his speech. The man appeared to be in his thirties.

Jay and Kai looked at each other, not knowing if it was safe for them to speak.

The man noted their hesitance. " _Mo chagren_ ," he apologized with a chuckle, thinking that maybe they didn't understand what he said. "Where I come from, we use the word _jaune_ for yellow. You Yellows seen much action?"

At this point, the cowboys sensed it would be safe for them to reply, so Jay answered. "Yes, sir. We've been in the action ever since the Battle of Jamanakai."

The sergeant looked at Jay, then Kai, then back at Jay. "You Yellows know each other?" he asked.

"Yes, sir, we do," Kai now spoke, feeling more confident that this man was a good sort. "We're both from the 5th Cavalry." Figuring that information was a pretty general description, he didn't mind sharing it.

"The 5th Cavalry, huh? Ain't that from western Ninjago where cowboys pride themselves on rasslin' cows? _Bracque!_ Cows ain't nothin'! Where I come from, we rassle _cocodrils_!"

The two prisoners looked at each other again, wondering what _cocodrils_ were.

"Alligators!" the sergeant grinned.

Kai and Jay laughed for the first time in days at the soldier's light-hearted brag about wrestling 13-foot reptiles. "Where are you from, pardner?" Jay asked.

"I'm from a little bitty town on a bayou, near Paradise Beach on the south coast -"

His sentence was interrupted by the sentry hollering "Corporal James Walker!" from the building's doorway.

"My turn!" Jay exclaimed as he stood up, a somewhat awkward effort due to the restraints on his wrists. Nevertheless, he was happy to rise from the cold ground and stretch his legs.

" _Allons_ ," the sergeant said to Kai, indicating that he should get up as well. "I want to stand under the eaves of the roof and out of the wind."

The shackled Kai also awkwardly got to his feet, and the two Yellow soldiers - followed by their armed Purple guard - made their way to the door where the sentry was waiting. With a parting glance at Kai, Jay entered the building and the sentry closed the door behind him, leaving Kai and the sergeant to bide their time.

" _Mo pele_ Brossette...er, my name is Brossette, by the way," the sergeant introduced himself.

Kai nodded. "Name's Smith," he replied, introducing himself in return. "I reckon you now know my friend's name is Walker."

"You and Walker are cowboys?"

Kai smiled. "Yep, we are. You may not think much of cowboys, but I don't mind sayin' we're some of the best in western Ninjago."

Brossette smirked. "So whatcha do with cows when you rassle 'em? You put 'em in gumbo? My _mamere_ made the best gumbo on the whole bayou. She -"

The sentry opened the door once again, but Jay did not exit the building as expected.

"Bring Corporal Smith in now, Sergeant Brossette," the sentry instructed. "You come in, too."

Brossette was pleased at the opportunity to come inside from the cold. " _L_ _aissez les bons temps rouler_ ," the Purple soldier muttered under his breath so that only Kai could hear. "Let the good times roll."

The room which the men entered was somewhat large and bare of furniture, except for two plain wooden chairs in one corner, one of which Jay sat upon. Sunlight from one small window, in addition to a fire burning in a simple fireplace, provided light. The fireplace also supplied welcome warmth from the cold outdoors.

"Stand in the corner and guard Corporal Walker," the sentry instructed Brossette.

Though he obeyed orders, Brossette hid his scowl at not being able to get closer to the fireplace to warm up. Kai wondered why Jay still wore his shackles.

A doorway off to the side of the room led to a small office.

The sentry took over the responsibility of overseeing Kai and guided him - via a rifle barrel thrust into his back - to the office doorway. Inside, Kai could see a burly older man sitting behind a desk flanked by two subordinates. He was busy looking at one of the many papers on the desktop.

"Smith is here, Colonel Doolverr!" the sentry announced.

 _Those two scalawags who bushwhacked Jay and me back near Ouroborus were yammerin' about a Doolverr!_ Kai remembered. _They said he was cruel!_


	36. A Kryptarium Welcome

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Spring officially arrived in the northern hemisphere this week, and today (3/24/17) the high temperature is predicted to be 77 degrees in my part of the USA - that's 26 degrees above normal! Awesome!**

 **I love all the positive and humorous comments on the previous chapter of this story that were posted by Loki God of Evil, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, MMM, StoryMaker7, WillowFalk, Naruby7, MasterofCupcakes, and WalrusWins257! Thank you SOOO much!**

 **A note about one of my OCs, the Purple Sergeant Brossette: I named him after one of my ancestors from Louisiana who fought in the American Civil War. That's why Brossette hails from a bayou area and loves to eat gumbo!**

 **In the chapter below, Kai converses with the Purple Colonel Doolverr, and it doesn't go well...for Kai...**

* * *

 **Chapter 36 - A Kryptarium Welcome**

Upon the Purple sentry's announcement that Kai had been brought into the building, Colonel Doolverr's head snapped up from the papers on his desk. His eyes flickered from the sentry and settled on the Yellow prisoner. A menacing grin slowly spread across his face as he gestured for the sentry to bring in the detainee.

"So you're Smith, from the 5th Yellow Cavalry, hmm?" the Purple colonel said in greeting as he slowly rose from his chair. The two subordinate officers who were standing on either side of him, both of who bore the title of major, stepped back in order to allow him room to maneuver.

"Yes, sir," was all Kai said in response. He sensed he should say as little as possible so that he could leave the colonel's office as soon as possible. The Purple soldiers who had bushwhacked Kai and Jay several days ago had said that this man could be cruel, and right now the two Garmadon Ranch cowboys were hindered in their ability to defend themselves, due to the fact that they were still wearing their wrist shackles. Thanks to the metal restraints, embossed with the name Vengestone Company, the prisoners could not spread their arms more than 24 inches apart.

Colonel Doolverr turned to nod at one of the two majors flanking him. The major nodded back and proceeded to leave the office.

The colonel once again looked at Kai, maintaining a steady gaze at the prisoner while sauntering around his desk. "Well, Smith," he began, "the report on your capture says you attempted to harm two Purple soldiers. Care to explain?"

Kai could not deny that he had intended to harm them. "I was defending my wife's honor," he replied.

Doolverr stopped walking when he reached Kai. Up close, Kai could see that the Purple officer's height measured a few inches shorter than the Yellow detainee, but his biceps looked to be as thick as tree trunks. _Sort of like Cole's arms_ , Kai thought, knowing it was never a good idea to provoke the ire of the black-haired cowboy. Several inebriated saloon patrons back in Ninjago Town had suffered the consequences of Cole's displeasure when they had paid too much attention to the beautiful saloon girl Brooke, once she had become his sweetheart.

"Defending your wife's honor, hmm?" The officer swiveled around to pick up an envelope from his desk and swiveled back to face Kai, holding up the item. "Would this be the wife who wrote this letter?" he asked.

Kai immediately recognized Sam's beautiful handwriting on the envelope and her strawberry scent still being emitted from the spritzed paper. "My letter!" he involuntarily exclaimed.

Doolverr held the paper out to him. "Would you like it back?"

Kai reached for it, needing to maneuver both shackled arms, but as he did so, Doolverr yanked it back. "Oh, so you just tried to attack me, hmm?" the Purple colonel commented, his eyebrow raised.

"What?! No, I didn't!" the prisoner protested.

"Hmm. It certainly seemed like an attack, wouldn't you say, boys?" Doolverr smiled knowingly at the sentry and the one major in the room, who chuckled.

Doolverr turned his attention back to Kai. "This makes THREE attacks on members of the King's army. And we can't allow that to go unpunished now, can we?"

The major who had left the office returned to stand next to the colonel.

Angered that his simple arm action was being deliberately misconstrued as aggression, Kai declared, "Anyone who believes in that 'King' balderdash is loco!"

Doolverr grabbed Kai's chin with his free hand and jerked it toward him. "Listen to me, you Yellow maggot! No one makes fun of the King!"

Kai's eyes narrowed as he seethed with contempt for the burly officer.

"Ah, the maggot is getting angry," the officer sneered. "You're just itching to hit me, aren't you? I can tell you don't like Purples one bit. Well, I don't like Yellows, especially Yellow hotheads!"

Doolverr let go of Kai, roughly pushing his chin to the side. Still holding onto the letter, the colonel placed his fists on his hips, his grin changing into a frown as he glared at the brown-haired cowboy.

"Boys," he said to his attending subordinates without breaking eye contact with Kai, "let's show Smith our solution to ensure cooperation from hotheads like him, shall we?"

The two majors responded with an enthusiastic "Yes, sir!" The nearest major grabbed Kai by the shoulders, turning him around and pushing him out of the office, closely followed by the other major, the colonel, and the sentry.

"What in tarnation?!" Kai exclaimed, surprised by the shoves. "Keep your muck forks off me!" he warned.

Upon hearing the ruckus and seeing his superior officers enter the main area, Brossette quickly hopped up from the chair he had been sitting in, knowing he was supposed to be standing on his feet while he guarded the seated Jay in their corner of the room. Jay and Brossette watched as Kai stumbled ahead of his Purple captors while being guided toward the fireplace. Just as they approached the hearth, one major suddenly tripped Kai, causing him to tumble to his hands and knees.

Brossette noticed that Colonel Doolverr put the paper he was holding in one pocket while extracting a glove from another pocket and putting it on.

One of the majors kicked Kai's arms out from under him, causing the prisoner to fall flat on his chest. The major then forcefully pressed his foot on Kai's back to keep him down.

Kai struggled to get up but the sound of the cock of the sentry's firearm made him pause. Jay's eyes widened as the weapon was pointed at him.

"Stay still, maggot!" Doolverr ordered. "My sentry has his firearm pointed right at your friend if you keep trying to move. Understand?"

Lying on the floor on his stomach, Kai felt his right boot and sock being removed.

With his now-gloved hand, Colonel Doolverr picked up the fireplace poker out of the hot fire. Sergeant Brossette had wondered why the major who had been in the room a few short minutes ago had left it in the fire after poking the wood. In horror, he suddenly realized why.

" _Bracque!_ " he mumbled under his breath.

"You bastards!" Jay yelled, also realizing what was about to happen.


	37. Injury and Inspiration

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **In my part of the USA, April Fools Day is winding down. I enjoyed reading the AFD-themed stories which several writers posted today. And I want to wish WillowFalk a happy birthday!**

 **And, as my OC Brossette might say, a big MERCI ("thank you") goes to FirstFandomFangirl, MMM, Loki God of Evil, StoryMaker7, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, MasterofCupcakes, WillowFalk, WalrusWins257, and Naruby7 for great comments on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, the reference to the desert is from Chapter 23 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **.**

 **This chapter doesn't start out too well for Kai...**

* * *

 **Chapter 37 - Injury and Inspiration**

Kai wailed in agony as the hot metal of the fireplace poker seared the flesh of his heel. The major who had been stepping on the prisoner's back then moved away, once Colonel Doolverr's deed was accomplished. The injured Yellow soldier remained on his stomach, writhing in pain.

"Let that be a reminder to you about who's in charge around here, hothead," Doolverr declared as he replaced the poker in its proper receptacle and removed his glove.

Jay glared at the Purple officer, not caring if the enemy noticed. _What a skeezick! Branding people just like cattle!_ the cowboy silently fumed.

Putting the glove back in his pocket, the general commented, "You know, I think it's almost suppertime. Boys, let's go eat, shall we?"

The majors and the sentry agreed and headed to the inner office to retrieve their coats.

While Doolverr waited for his coat to be brought to him, he noticed Brossette standing there uncertainly. "Don't think you're coming with us, Sergeant," the officer scoffed. "Bring the hothead to the infirmary to get treated for his 'accident,' then get these Yellow maggots into the stockade," he ordered. "I'm sure Smith's friend here - I forgot his name, but who cares? - will help you drag him around. The key which unlocks the shackles is on my desk."

The sentry returned with Doolverr's coat and held it up behind the Purple officer to assist him in putting it on.

As the colonel donned the garment, in preparation to leave the building, the letter from Sam to Kai fell out of his uniform pocket.

Doolverr picked up the envelope and held it toward Brossette. "Sergeant," he ordered, "go throw this in the fireplace, you lazy swamplander, and earn your pay, would you?"

As Brossette took the paper, frowning at the insult, Doolverr continued. "The rest of us are going to enjoy some roasted goose. Tell me, boys," he said jovially to the two majors and the sentry as they went out the door, "what brand of wine shall we have tonight with our goose?"

An annoyed Brossette watched as the door closed after the jocund group, having just been made to feel like an insignificant servant, especially in front of prisoners. He looked at the envelope in his hand and angrily stuffed it in his pocket.

Turning his attention to the two prisoners, he saw that Jay, though limited in his arm movements, thanks to his Vengestone Company shackles, was kneeling next to Kai, offering comfort and trying to look at the injury while Kai twisted in anguish.

Brossette dashed into the colonel's office and swiftly located the key to the shackles. "Here is the key, _mes amis_ ," he announced, holding it up as he ran back into the main room.

Jay held up his wrists as the Purple soldier unlocked his shackles first. "I did not know that the colonel would make the _misere_ ," he said as he twisted the key, tilting his head toward the cowboy in misery on the ground. "To me, Colonel Doolverr is a _peeshwank_!"

The corners of Jay's mouth couldn't help but upturn slightly at the amusing-sounding word. "What is a _peeshwank_?" he asked, briskly rubbing his wrists after being released from the metal restraints.

"Where I come from, it means a runt, a little person," Brossette explained while endeavoring to unlock Kai's shackles.

Jay agreed. "A _peeshwank_ he is, hands down! Short in size and short on morals!" He turned his attention to Kai, "Hold yer horses, pardner, and you'll be right as rain after we get you to the infirmary!"

* * *

 _ **Later that night…**_

As Kai lay on his stomach in the shanty which would serve as his home - as well as the home of Jay and four other Yellows - for the foreseeable future, he was thankful for one small blessing among the atrocities he had suffered in the days since he and Jay were bushwhacked near Ouroborus.

He still had Sam's hairpin. He could feel the object located in the pocket next to his heart.

After all his other possessions had been stolen by the bushwhackers, such as his wedding ring, Kai had been quite overjoyed to discover that they had missed the hairpin when they had rifled through his pockets while he was unconscious.

The hairpin was the same one which had given him strength to survive in the desert nearly a year and half ago, on that awful day in which Morro had ridden away with Sam and left Kai to die in the hot sun. Upon finding the hairpin on the dry, dusty desert ground, the cowboy had vowed he would be reunited with his woman.

Tonight, as he endured the pain of his burned foot, he made the same vow, and added to it. He vowed to be reunited with his wife, and together with her, they would raise their child.

* * *

 _ **A Mid-December Morning...**_

During each night of the three weeks since Kai and Jay had been incarcerated in the Kryptarium Prison, Kai shivered in restless sleep underneath a thin blanket in the small shanty he shared with his fellow Garmadon Ranch cowboy and four other prisoners within the stockade. His shivering often woke him up each night, much to his annoyance, but all he could do was clutch the blanket tighter around his shoulders and close his eyes again, hoping he would soon be dreaming once again of his beloved Sam.

Sometimes the pain from the burn on his heel woke him, too, but as the injury continued to heal, this occurred less frequently.

At daybreak, a Purple bugler's tune took its turn at interrupting the sleep of the prisoners. They were being awakened in order to participate in the routine morning roll call, to make sure no one had escaped during the night.

This morning, as usual, Kai reluctantly opened his eyes and grudgingly threw off the thin blanket, even though it had barely provided any warmth during the night. Next to him, Jay began to stir, as did the other shanty occupants. Though they craved more sleep, they knew it was best to hurry to roll call. The faster they were accounted for, the faster the firepit in their section of the prison yard could be lit for the day, providing much needed warmth, and the faster they could expect the food wagon to arrive with their meager breakfast rations of cornbread and beans. If they were lucky, they might get a bit of bacon, too.

Normally the Garmadon Ranch cowboys loved to eat these foods when made by the women back at home, but they agreed between themselves that whoever was cooking for the prisoners ought to be sentenced to eating his own recipes.

Kai and Jay sleepily filed out of the shanty. Jay altered the speed of his pace to accommodate his limping friend, pleased that Kai was getting around much better now after barely being able to walk after their encounter with Colonel Doolverr.

Together, the two cowboys made their way to the open space in their section of the prison yard along with the other incarcerated men, who were forming straight rows. Kai stood in his assigned spot in the fifth line, and Jay stood next to him. When they first arrived at Kryptarium, their row was the last row in the roll call lineup. Now, the number of rows had doubled in the past three weeks, which Kai knew was not a good sign for the Yellow Army, since it meant that more and more soldiers on their side were being captured.

While waiting for the rest of the men to assemble, Kai looked toward the front of the group to see which Purple guard would be calling the roll this morning.

Sergeant Brossette, one of the Purple soldiers frequently assigned to roll call duty, stood in front of the group, waiting to begin calling the list of prisoners' names.

Upon seeing the Purple officer standing next to Sergeant Brossette, Kai stiffened.

It was Colonel Doolverr.

Kai had not seen the burly officer since that afternoon three weeks ago when he and Jay first arrived at Kryptarium Prison, but the burn on his foot was a constant reminder of the cruel colonel.

"All right, you maggots, listen up!" Doolverr shouted at the prisoners, once they had assembled. "I'm here to tell you that in honor of next week's Christmas holiday, the Commanding Generals of the Purple Army and the Yellow Army struck a deal in which prisoners will be exchanged. I've been told to pick a dozen of you Yellows from this section of the prison and put those dozen on a wagon to Ouroborus tomorrow."

"Hotheads" - Doolverr grinned, looking directly at Kai in the fifth row - "needn't get their hopes up about leaving this place, 'cause they aren't going anywhere! But the rest of you will find out tomorrow morning. Carry on with the roll call, Sergeant!"

The general walked away, and Brossette, giving him a quick glare behind his back, began to call out the prisoners' names.

While waiting to hear his own name, Kai realized that even though he wouldn't have expected to be included in the exchange of prisoners, it still pained him to be directly told that he had no chance of freedom.

At least he had regained possession of the letter from his beloved Sam, telling him he was going to be a daddy.

Brossette had slipped it to Jay before taking the two Yellow prisoners from the infirmary to the stockade on that first day in Kryptarium Prison.


	38. Best Interests

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **The Hands of Time season will finally be aired in the USA on Cartoon Network starting May 15! Yay!**

 **I really appreciate all the kindness and support of all the readers out there! Special shoutouts go to:**

 **HS1274281, Loki God of Evil, and Willow Falk for faving me as an author...**

 **Loki God of Evil and Willow Falk for faving this story...**

 **ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, StoryMaker7, Loki God of Evil, MasterofCupcakes, MMM, WalrusWins257, and WillowFalk for posting great comments on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, Jake Clouse describes his doomed courtship with Sam. See Sam's perspective of the relationship in Chapter 14 of** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **.**

 **The conversation below takes place late one night at Garmadon Ranch, about one week before Christmas...**

* * *

 **Chapter 38 - Best Interests**

"So, Clouse, you say you knew this young woman several years ago?"

In the main house of Garmadon Ranch, behind the closed door of what used to be Mr. Wu's office, General Chen asked the question of his future son-in-law, Major Jacob Clouse. As the two Purple army officers privately conversed late in the evening, Chen reclined in the desk chair with his feet propped up on the mahogany writing surface, holding a cigar in one hand and a glass of premium whiskey in the other.

The cigar came from his own personal humidor. The small ornate box was a gift from the King on the day that Chen became the leader of the Third Division. The whiskey came from the Garmadon Ranch owner's liquor collection, from which the general had helped himself.

Jake, occupying the guest chair on the other side of the desk, also cradled a glass of the premium beverage. He did not particularly enjoy having to view the soles of Chen's boots, having grown up in a household where elegance was practiced, but he was working on tolerating the coarseness of his future father-in-law.

"Yes, sir," Jake replied to the question. "Sam and I lived about a half-mile away from each other back in Tonbos. She was the daughter of a very successful businessman named Cyrus Borg who sold equipment to railroad companies."

"By the way, Wu has a nice chair, don't you think?" the general suddenly commented. He patted the leather-covered armrests admiringly. After sipping his drink, he added, "And some fine whiskey, too." He wiped whiskey from his mouth with his sleeve. Jake refrained from rolling his eyes at the uncouth action.

The general returned to the discussion about Sam. "So the young lady is well-to-do, then," he remarked.

Jake shrugged. "She definitely was wealthy in the past, and I presume she is now. Shortly after her father died, she sold his company and left the United States to come to this region of Ninjago."

"So she's beautiful AND rich. Why did you not try to make her your wife, Clouse?" Chen asked as he tapped cigar ash directly onto the floor instead of locating a proper receptacle.

Jake partook of his whiskey glass before answering, in order to conceal his annoyance at the slovenly behavior he had just witnessed. "I did try, sir. But her father guessed that I was mainly after her money instead of her, so he forbade it."

"So you had a conniving nature even back then. I'm impressed, Clouse!" Chen chuckled. The general then lazily took his feet off the desk and planted them on the floor, leaned his elbow on the desk, and blew a cigar smoke ring toward Jake.

"Admit the truth, Clouse - I know you did not propose marriage to my daughter because of love. The fact is, you and I are very much alike. We believe that marriages take place in order to form alliances and to gain advantages, not for something silly like love."

Jake blinked away the smoke from his eyes as Chen continued. "But Skylor believes in fantasies like 'happily ever after' and all that nonsense, for she's just like her late mother was. Make sure she keeps believing in those fantasies. I was once careless about keeping my dalliances secret, and when her mother found out about them, she died of a broken heart. Then I had to raise the little imp by myself."

"It's in my best interest to keep your daughter happy, sir," Jake replied.

"Good." Chen took another puff of his cigar and leaned back in his chair. "So...getting back to your beautiful blonde friend, tell me...now that her father is deceased, would you try again to marry her, if you weren't already engaged to my daughter?"

The young major shook his head. "She married a local man when she came to Ninjago Town."

"Oh," Chen frowned. "Where is he right now?"

"Her husband is a Yellow who disappeared while he was on a reconnaissance mission near Ouroborus. As a favor to her, I verified that this man, Kai Smith, is currently being held as a prisoner at Kryptarium. I also verified that the husband of the woman named Nya with the new baby is being held there, too."

The general took a long puff on his cigar, then - as if lost in thought - he quietly watched as his exhaled smoke ring dissipated into the air. "Kryptarium Prison," he finally said, slowly, "where my old friend Doolverr maintains the list of prisoners," he added.

Jake nodded.

"And as you know, Doolverr has a reputation for brutally treating prisoners."

Jake nodded again, not exactly sure what Chen was leading up to.

Chen sensed that Jake was not following his train of thought, so he leaned forward in his chair toward the major and came right to the point.

"Clouse, I want your beautiful blonde friend to become my courtesan during our winter stay here at this ranch."

Chen grinned fiendishly as he continued. "She will be very likely to cooperate if you tell her it will be in her husband's best interest for her to do so, for I'll instruct Doolverr to leave him alone. Otherwise," he shrugged, "it could be a long winter for her husband. A very long winter."

Chen threw his head back and guzzled the last of the whiskey in his glass. Then he slammed the glass down on the desk and focused his gaze on Jake.

"So, Clouse, do what you need to do to get her to appear at my rendezvous place on Christmas Day at two o'clock in the afternoon. I'll let you know where the place will be on the day before then. You are dismissed."

Jake, somewhat taken aback by the suddenness of the command, nevertheless set his glass down, stood up, saluted, and left the room.

He had to admit that, despite his superior officer's boorishness, Chen was a smart man.


	39. Christmas Day at Kryptarium Prison

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Surprise! Another chapter is up in less than 48 hours! That hasn't happened in forever!**

 **I wish to send a special shoutout to Skales Jnr, who recently faved me as an author. Thank you so much!**

 **And a big heartful of thanks goes to MasterofCupcakes, Loki God of Evil, Willow Falk, MMM, and StoryMaker7 for commenting on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, a meeting between two particular people, which many of you have been waiting for, will finally happen!...**

* * *

 **Chapter 39 - Christmas Day in Kryptarium Prison**

Kai felt very alone on this gray Christmas Day.

For most of the past seven months, while he and Jay were away from their home and from the women who loved them, the friends had kept up each other's spirits when the atrocities of war were taking their toll. The cowboys reminded each other of what they were fighting for and encouraged each other to keep going.

When the cowboys were captured and sent here to Kryptarium Prison, they kept each other company and calmed each other down when fears of never seeing home again would surface.

But now several days had passed since Jay had left on a wagon, being carried away from Kryptarium with other lucky prisoners who were now savoring freedom in a Christmas Day exchange of prisoners of war.

In the late afternoon hours on this winter day, Kai sat by himself in a corner of the prison yard on the cold ground, staring at a clump of dirt as he contemplated his circumstances. It seemed that the Purples had the upper hand in the war, for new prisoners were being brought into the camp every day.

He rubbed his arms in an effort to keep warm while he recalled how eager and proud he had been to join Company C of the 5th Ninjago Volunteer Cavalry Regiment. It was a chance to defend the freedom of his homeland from those who wanted to bring back tyranny to Ninjago.

And what had his efforts gained him? Confinement in squalid conditions with questionable smells, tasteless food, inadequate warmth, and harsh treatment from the guards, with Sergeant Brossette being the lone exception.

And now he no longer had his horse, his gun, his wedding ring, his hat, or the scarf Sam had knitted for him. Even his friend Jay was gone now.

Merry Christmas, indeed.

Kai was so focused on staring at the clump of dirt that he failed to notice that Brossette, the Purple sergeant, had approached him.

"Get up, Smith," Brossette ordered, startling the cowboy. "You're wanted at the registration building for interrogation." Though the Purple soldier spoke gruffly, he winked at the prisoner to acknowledge the secret friendship the two had begun to form, a friendship which had to be concealed from other soldiers and prisoners, for if it were revealed, they both would be punished.

Though the presence of the sergeant did not alarm Kai, the message did. "What?!" he exclaimed. "What could I possibly need to be interrogated for?" At least Colonel Doolverr had reportedly left the prison camp for a weeklong holiday furlough, he reminded himself. Kai's foot was healing, but the effects of the burn from the Purple officer last month still lingered.

"I don't question the orders," the sergeant growled, relishing his opportunity to play the role of a mean soldier as he nudged Kai with the barrel of his rifle. "Get moving!"

Kai slowly stood up and pulled his winter slicker tighter around him against the cold as Brossette, using the gun barrel, guided him through the prison yard, past the prisoner shanties, and out of the stockade gate. Kai took a few deep breaths as they walked toward the registration building. The air seemed fresher, now that they were outside the stockade.

"So who wants to interrogate me?" Kai asked, continuing to walk in front of the Purple guard.

"Major Amber," Sergeant Brossette replied.

"Mmph," Kai said as he mulled over the name. "Haven't heard of his name yet."

The Purple guard laughed. "I think you'll find that an interrogation by Major Amber will be to your liking."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kai demanded to know.

Brossette chuckled. "You'll see," he said as they approached the building.

The door to the registration building was guarded by another Purple soldier. "Bringing prisoner Smith to see Major Amber," Brossette told the guard.

"Major Amber is not here yet, but you are expected," the guard replied, looking at Kai. "Proceed."

Sergeant Brossette guided Kai inside the door of the building and closed it behind them. Kai had expected to see a large room bare of furniture, except for two plain wooden chairs, which was how he remembered it from a few weeks ago.

There still was a fire in the fireplace, as before, and there were two wooden chairs. But now, the chairs were placed at a dining table topped with two lit candelabra, two place settings of china and silverware accompanied by festive red linen napkins, and a bottle of wine with two wine glasses.

"Wha-what's going on here?" the confused prisoner stammered.

"Just take off your coat and sit down, and _laissez les bons temps rouler_ ," the Purple guard shrugged. "Let the good times roll! I'm going to leave now, but..."

"...I'll be standing guard right outside, so don't try any funny business!" Brossette suddenly shouted in order to show off his fake ruthlessness to soldiers outside who were within earshot. And with a grin and a tip of his cap, Brossette opened the door and exited the building, leaving Kai alone in the room.

As directed, Kai slowly removed his winter slicker and draped it over the coat rack by the fireplace as he looked over his surroundings and tried to make sense of what was going on.

The door opened again. Two soldiers brought in trays of food with wonderful aromas, the likes of which Kai hadn't inhaled in months. His mouth watered.

The two soldiers quickly set the food neatly on the table. When their trays were empty, they turned to a woman who had followed them in but had remained at the door. Kai had been so focused on the food that he hadn't noticed her at first. She was dressed in Purple army attire appropriate for a female. She wore the hood of her purple cloak over her head, obscuring her face.

"We'll be standing by in the kitchen building if you need anything, Major Amber," one soldier said as they both saluted her.

 _That's Major Amber?_ Kai thought to himself.

The woman wordlessly saluted them back, and after they departed, she closed the door behind them.

Turning to the prisoner, she said, "Merry Christmas, Kai."

 _That voice!_ Kai thought. _It's...it's…_

The major removed the hood of her cloak, revealing herself to be the woman who turned down Kai's proposal of marriage nearly a year and a half ago.

 _...Skylor!_


	40. Kai's Christmas Supper

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **It's been a good week so far. For one thing, the FanFiction email notification system finally appears to be fixed!**

 **Also this week, I am happily watching the Hands of Time season on Cartoon Network here in the USA. The first two episodes are awesome!**

 **A special shoutout goes to BraveS3, who has faved my soldier tale here, along with its predecessor T** _ **he Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **, as well as** _ **The Fire Within: The Fire Witch Incident**_ **. Thank you so much!**

 **And a big howdy goes to the commenters on this soldier tale's previous chapter. Yes, I'm looking at you, FirstFandomFangirl, Loki God of Evil, MMM, StoryMaker7, MasterofCupcakes, Willow Falk, Naruby7, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, WalrusWins257, and Titanium Jayde! (And welcome back to the fandom, TJ!)**

 **If some of the phraseology of Skylor's description sounds familiar, I borrowed it from measuremesky, my family member who described her in Chapter 9 of** _ **The Fire Within**_ **.**

 **And I put in a small reference to Episode 40 ("Spellbound"). Can you find it?**

 **In the chapter below, Kai and Skylor have their first conversation in well over a year...**

* * *

 **Chapter 40 - Kai's Christmas Supper**

"Skylor!" the Yellow soldier exclaimed in surprise, slightly limping as he strode across the room toward the Purple officer. "What are you...How did you get...I'm flummoxed!"

Skylor gave that entrancing laugh that he remembered - that warm, melodious laugh that sounded like the chiming of bells.

"It's good to see you again, too, Kai," she smiled, stepping up to greet him with a hug and a warm kiss on his cheek. As she did, he detected a whiff of that familiar floral scent she wore back in Ninjago Town.

She stepped back to undo her cloak.

"Here, let me," he said, taking her cloak like the gentleman he was, though he wondered if he should be thinking of her as an officer in the enemy army instead of a lady.

Skylor's vibrant green eyes looked back at him warmly.

"I've arranged for us to share a Christmas supper together while I 'interrogate' you," she said cheerily as they walked back to the festive table in the middle of the room. "I hope you don't mind."

She waited at the table while Kai continued walking to the fireplace with her cloak. "Of course not," he replied, "but isn't it forbidden for Purples and Yellows to socialize?"

He hung the cloak on the coat rack and turned back to look at her. Her fiery red hair was put up in a ladies' bun style, suitable for the military, but he remembered how beautiful it looked when she let it down - it was long and shiny and flowed like a red satin curtain.

"You're right - fraternization is not exactly approved," Skylor explained as he joined her at the table, "but today it's Christmas, and that annoying Colonel Doolverr is on furlough, so he won't know. In fact, the reason I'm here at Kryptarium right now is to take over his duties until he returns next week."

She continued. "And besides that, the three sergeants who know about you being here won't say anything, especially since I promised to recommend them for a promotion," she chuckled.

Since it was unnatural for Kai's gentlemanly self not to seat a lady first at a supper table, enemy or not, he went ahead and pulled out Skylor's chair for her, pushing it back toward the table after she sat.

"Thank you," she told him politely as he sat down himself, placing a napkin on his lap. "Would you be so kind as to fill our wine glasses?" she asked.

Her question seemed so familiar, and he suddenly realized why. She had made the request of him once before. On the night he had last seen her, nearly a year and a half ago back in Ninjago Town, they were sitting down to dine on a fancy repast, much like tonight. He had rented the upper alcove of the Morro Saloon, which overlooked the main floor, so that he and Skylor could enjoy a private supper together. A romantic, candlelit meal had been part of his plan to propose marriage to her that evening.

"Happy to oblige," he said, reaching for the bottle.

As he poured, his initial confusion about the current situation cleared, and he began to think of coherent questions for her.

She held up her hand. "That's enough wine in my glass, thank you," she said. He watched her as she put the glass to those full, cherry red lips he remembered.

"So how did you come to be an officer in the Purple Army?" he asked.

Skylor set down her glass before answering. "Well, it's not difficult to become a major in the Purple Army when your father is the commanding general of the Third Division."

Kai thought for a moment. The commander of the Third Division was General Chen. The name of the red-haired beauty sitting before him was...Skylor...Chen!

"Chen's your daddy?!" Kai exclaimed in horror, vigorously pushing his seat back.

Annoyance at Kai's reaction flickered in Skylor's eyes for a brief moment. "Yes, I am his daughter."

Kai furrowed his brow. "Wait! Then why are you going by the name of Major Amber?" He scooted his chair back to the table.

"For a couple of reasons," Skylor replied. "Could you please put a few slices of ham on my plate? Thank you. The name of Amber is my late mother's maiden name, and I want to use it instead of the name of Chen in order to avoid confusion among soldiers as to which Chen in the high officer ranks actually had given a certain order. I also want to build up a reputation as a commander that was separate from the influence of my father."

As Skylor talked, Kai filled their plates with servings of ham and side dishes. He caught himself filling his plate too full of food. Though the spread of food was more than he had seen in weeks, his stomach had only a certain capacity to hold so much.

"So I reckon you found out I was here by looking at Doolverr's prisoner list," he guessed.

Skylor nodded in affirmation as they began to eat their supper. "And I saw that Jay was a prisoner, too, up until a few days ago. Otherwise I would have invited him here as well."

The mention of Jay reminded Kai of his earlier contemplation of the war. "Skylor, you're an intelligent person," he began. "So why have you chosen the wrong side of this war? Don't you believe in freedom? Why would you want to put control of the government into the hands of one person, a king?"

"You can go ahead and claim that I'm on the wrong side," a somewhat indignant Skylor frowned, "but I can say that you're on the losing side. The Purples now control half of Ninjago, ever since western Ninjago fell to the Third Purple Division at the beginning of December."

"What?!" Kai paused his fork in midair. Was Ninjago Town, a strong Yellow bastion, now in Purple hands?

A sheepish look crossed Skylor's face. "I'm sorry. I forgot that you don't know the latest news of the war. Yes, we Purples control Ninjago Town now."

"And I guess I might as well tell you where the Third Division is camping for the winter," she continued. "Garmadon Ranch!"

The color drained from Kai's face as his fork remained in midair. Were his loved ones back home all right? How was Sam?

"I wasn't going to tell you until after supper, since I figured you'd react like that," Skylor admitted. "But you should feel better knowing that my source told me that the civilian prisoners there are being treated fairly."

"And who exactly are the civilian prisoners?" Kai managed to choke out, still in shock over the news he had just been told.

Skylor began to count out on her fingers. "There's Mr. Wu, of course, and the housekeeper. And Nya, who I guess finally got married to Jay after I left town. And their new baby boy..."

 _So Nya had the baby,_ Kai thought. _But Jay won't be able to see them, now that they're behind enemy lines._

"...and a lady who I never met while I was in Ninjago Town. Her name is Samantha Smith."


	41. Kai's Christmas Dessert

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **A big HOWDY to all!**

 **I can't believe it's been over TWO MONTHS since I last updated this story! Where has the summer gone? In my part of the USA, the new school year will begin in less than three weeks!**

 **Part of my summer was spent vacationing in sunny Phoenix, Arizona. That area of the USA is so beautiful - I've visited it three times in the past three years!**

 **Arizona has also provided me with story inspiration. On my visit in 2015 I was inspired to write my very first fanfic** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Cowboy**_ **. On my 2017 visit I was struck with the idea for a story that will follow** _ **The Fire Within a Ninjago Soldier**_ **and will feature a certain black-haired cowboy. But that's all I'll say about it for now! XD**

 **Would you believe I have not yet seen the very last episode of The Hands of Time season? At this point I may wait to watch it until just before the Lego Ninjago movie premieres. But based on the episodes I have seen, I find the season to be so awesome! In my personal list of favorite seasons, it ranks a very close second to the Tournament of Elements season.**

 **I wish to thank all the readers of this tale and all the commenters on the previous chapter for your kind words. I so appreciate all of you!**

 **In the previous chapter, during a supper conversation, Skylor revealed to Kai that his beloved wife Sam had become a civilian prisoner of the Purple Army.**

 **In the chapter below, Kai and Skylor's supper concludes in a interesting way...**

* * *

 **Chapter 41 - Kai's Christmas Dessert**

Kai did not like hearing that his beloved wife Sam was a civilian prisoner of the Purple Army, but upon reminding himself that the Garmadon Ranch captives were supposedly being treated fairly, he calmed himself down with an audible exhale of breath.

"Samantha Smith is my wife. She goes by the name of Sam," Kai explained as he resumed eating. "She arrived in Ninjago Town just a few weeks after you left."

Skylor smirked as she picked up her wine glass. "When my source wrote in a letter to me that she was the wife of one of the cowboys at the ranch, it wasn't hard to figure out which cowboy, based on her last name."

Skylor sipped her wine before continuing. "My source tells me Sam inherited a million dollars from her father before she arrived in Ninjago Town."

Kai stopped in mid-chew of a bite of ham, not sure of how to respond to her comment. It was not a secret that Sam was the daughter of Cyrus Borg, the late business tycoon, but he did not want to go into a detailed discussion of her money, for that might make her a target of Purple shenanigans. So he swallowed the bite of ham and answered the question by asking a question of his own.

"Who is your source?" he inquired, helping himself to some wine.

The question distracted Skylor, just like he had hoped. "His name is Major Jacob Clouse. He's my fiancé," she smiled broadly. "But apparently at one time he was Sam's sweetheart..."

Kai's eyes widened.

"...until her father interfered and convinced her to end the relationship with him instead of marrying him."

Something about that story did seem familiar to Kai. Now that he thought about it, he did recall Sam once telling him about a young man who had been courting her and whose proposal of marriage she had turned down, on the advice of her daddy.

Yep, she had told the story to him last year in that jail cell in Noscut on the morning after they had been kidnapped by Morro. It was the morning he himself had tried to propose to her, but she didn't let him, for the jail cell was too wretched of a place for such a beautiful event to occur.

Kai drained his wine glass and refilled it. "So how did you and Major Clouse come to know each other?" he asked.

Skylor sipped again from her wine glass. "A while back, Jake had made contact with one of the original Purple alliance leaders, inquiring about joining our cause, which I already was a part of. It was my job to meet Jake and get to know him and verify that his request to join us was legitimate, and not an attempt by a spy to infiltrate our ranks. So when he arrived in Ninjago Town-"

"Ninjago Town?! You were already working for the Purples while I was courting you in Ninjago Town?!" Kai exclaimed incredulously. "And here I thought you were a writer of articles for some magazine in the United States!" He took a swig from his wine glass and set it down on the table with a little more force than needed. Some wine spilled out.

"I know. I had to lie," Skylor sheepishly admitted as she touched his hand which still held the wine glass. Kai shivered with the contact of her warm, silky smooth skin. He wasn't cold, though - no, his skin burned where she had touched it.

"Here, let me pour some more wine in your glass," Skylor offered. She took the bottle and topped off his glass. He promptly quaffed half the contents.

She continued. "When Jake arrived in town, he passed my initial interview, so I had to bring him to Jamanakai Village the next day so he could be interviewed further by other members of the Purple alliance. That's why I left town."

"And he was the man you left with." Kai now had the answer to a question that had been at the far back corner of his mind for over a year and a half. He gulped more wine. "He obviously passed your personal interview in addition to that Purple interview."

Skylor rolled her eyes. "I didn't expect you'd be surprising me with that special supper at the Morro Saloon and proposing marriage so soon in our relationship. I didn't know you felt that strongly about me."

"Well, I did." Though Kai's head was starting to spin from the wine, he still drank some more.

"I guess I would have had to turn you down anyway, 'cause you're obviously staunchly Yellow," Skylor sneered. "But, to finish answering your question of how I found Jake, the Purple leaders asked me to do some other jobs, and Jake accompanied me. We became sweet on each other, and we got engaged. We'll get married when we've finished conquering Ninjago."

"Now I'm working my way up the ranks in the Purple Army," Skylor brightly added. "I just arrived here from an assignment in Ouroborus. Jake is a combat officer, so our paths don't cross a lot. It was September when I last saw him," she frowned.

In Kai's somewhat malnourished state, the wine was affecting him more quickly and strongly than it otherwise would.

"It wash Sheptember when I lasht shaw Sham. I missh her." he stated, slurring his words.

Suddenly, Kai fell out of his chair and onto the floor.

"Kai!" Skylor jumped out of her seat and rushed around to the other side of the dining table. Kai had landed on his back.

She knelt on the ground next to him. "Are you all right?"

Kai motioned with his finger for her to come nearer, as if he wanted to share a secret. Skylor leaned in closer.

"War makesh you appreciate the shimple thingsh in life. A tashty meal, a hot bath, and a good woman," Kai declared.

Skylor smiled at the inebriated cowboy with the soft brown eyes. He looked so sweet in his tipsy state.

Being in such close proximity to a man made Skylor pine for her fiance. She certainly hoped that on the next Christmas, she and Jake would be able to spend the holiday together. She had not seen him for nearly four months, and right now she felt very lonely. She desperately craved the touch of a man's hand, the embrace of a man's arms, the kiss of a man's lips...

Her face mere inches from Kai's, Skylor leaned in to kiss him, as if they were sweethearts again.

"Mmph," was the sound Kai uttered as her lips met his, but he offered no protest, accepting her multiple sweet tokens of affection.

After a minute, she raised her head. Their eyes locked in a steady gaze.

Suddenly, with surprising agility for an intoxicated person, Kai rolled Skylor over so that she was now the one on her back. He was now propped up on his elbow, looking down into her sparkling green eyes.

With his passion aroused, Kai sought contact with Skylor's cherry red lips once again. Oh, how he had missed the scent of a woman's skin, the softness of a woman's touch, the taste of a woman's kisses...

"Oh, Sham!" he murmured.

Upon the mention of another woman's name, Skylor became annoyed and pushed him off her. Once again, he landed with his back on the floor.

"I'm not Sam, you drunken skunk!" she hissed as she propped herself up to berate him.

But when she turned to Kai to give him a piece of her mind, she saw that he had passed out. His chest rose and fell in a rhythmic pattern, indicating he was going to be dead to the world for a while.

Though she had just been annoyed with him, Skylor could not help smiling at how innocent and boyish he looked while sleeping. She supposed she could forgive him for hurting her feelings. It was Christmas, after all.

Skylor rose to her feet, smoothing out her uniform and her hair before she walked over to door, opening it. She spotted the soldier on guard duty.

"Sergeant Brossette!" Skylor called out. "The prisoner has passed out. Would you and Sleven and Izor please take him back to his shanty in the stockade?"

"Yes, Major Amber," Brossette replied.

"And when you three come back, help yourself to the rest of the food here and clean up when you're done."

"Yes, Major," the sergeant responded, grinning broadly. "Merry Christmas!"


	42. New Year's Day in a Prison Camp

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy! If you can, please check out the latest YouTube videos by my friend Stephanie Brown. Not only has she created another great Ninjago music video, but she has also produced two videos in which she states her opinions about the upcoming Ninjago Season 8. So you can finally see what she looks like!**

 **In my haste to post the previous chapter, I did not take the opportunity to acknowledge the kind commenters on Chapter 40, so now I would like to give shoutouts to those who posted reviews of Chapters 40 and 41:**

 **MasterofCupcakes, Loki God of Evil, MMM, Naruby7, Willow Falk, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, The Jade Raven of Rivendell, StoryMaker7, WalrusWins257, BraveSeeker3, and a Guest. THANK YOU!**

 **Our story will continue to focus on Kai for the moment. (But don't worry...we will eventually see what is happening with his beloved wife Sam back at Garmadon Ranch!) The chapter below takes place on New Year's Day, one week after the previous chapter...**

* * *

 **Chapter 42 - New Year's Day in a Prison Camp**

Kai lowered himself into the tin tub of hot water. The heat felt good to his sore muscles. He was overdue for a cleansing, anyway. He certainly hadn't had an opportunity to bathe since his capture by the Purple Army in November, and now it was the first day of January, New Year's Day.

According to Sergeant Brossette, who had escorted him here to the registration building this afternoon, Skylor had arranged this soak for him, and now here he was, sitting in the tub in front of the fire in the fireplace alone, surrounded by privacy screens. Pots of water were being kept warm over the fire, ready to be added to the tub when the bathwater temperature became tepid. A cloth, towel, and soap were within reach. There were even implements for shaving the weeks-old beard from his face.

As Kai quickly ducked his head in the water before sitting back up and slicking back his wet hair, he wondered why Skylor was being so nice to him. Did she feel guilty about rejecting his marriage proposal two springs ago? She didn't have to worry about it anymore. He had moped around for only a few weeks before he had met Sam, and since then he had been very happy and did not bear any resentment toward the red-haired beauty.

If anything, Kai felt he was the one who owed Skylor an apology for his behavior one week ago in this very room. Due to the wine he had consumed that night, he didn't exactly remember everything that had happened, but he did have a vague recollection of lying on the floor, holding her close in his arms. And when he woke up the next day with a splitting headache, he discovered some of her cherry red lip makeup on his own lips, proving that there had been kissing.

Upon that discovery, Kai had been mortified by his behavior. Yes, Skylor was an elegant, graceful, beautiful red-haired woman who had once been his sweetheart. And yes, it was wartime and people got lonely when separated from their loved ones for extended periods of time. And he had sensed Skylor was flirting with him. But Skylor had promised herself to another man. And Kai himself was committed to an elegant, graceful, beautiful blonde-haired woman back home at Garmadon Ranch, who he dearly loved and who would be hurt if she found out what he had done.

Kai decided that the best thing to do was to apologize for his behavior to Skylor, who he had not seen since that night, and then never speak of it again, resolving to be more vigilant about upholding his marriage vows to Sam. And more vigilant about watching his intake of wine.

On the other side of the privacy screens, Kai heard the door to the building open. He froze, literally and figuratively, as cold air rushed inside, finding its way past the screens to his wet skin. He stayed as quiet as he could, silently shivering, listening and waiting to see what would happen next.

The main door closed again, and footsteps traversed from the main door to the privacy screen.

"Kai?" a familiar female voice asked from beyond the screen.

"I'm here, Skylor," Kai called out.

"How is your bath going?" she asked.

"It's fine," he replied as he heard her footsteps walk around the screens so that he could tell she was behind him. "Listen, Skylor, we need to talk-"

"Need help washing your back?" Skylor interrupted, poking her head inside the screens.

Flustered, Kai quickly sought the towel and draped it across the tub to protect his privacy, now that she had breached the screens. He sloshed water around as he did so.

"Skylor! What are you doing?" he demanded to know.

The green-eyed officer walked around the tub into his line of sight. "Checking my prisoner," she smiled, surveying his bare chest. "A little gaunt, but still nice."

"Skylor, we need to talk-" Kai began again, before he saw her pick up his clothes.

"Um, what are you doing with those?" he asked, his eyebrow raised.

She grinned as she left the the screened area with them. "Come and get them when you're done!" she teased, waving the garments as she walked to the office room and shut the door.

"Skylor!" Kai hollered. She was not making it easy for him to have a talk with her.

 _I reckon as long as I'm in here, I'll finish bathing and shaving before I confront her,_ he thought, so he spent the next few minutes cleansing before he got out of the tub.

As Kai dried himself off, he felt refreshed. Ready to begin a new year, albeit not in a place he wanted to be. By the time the next New Year's Day rolled around, he certainly hoped to be standing on Garmadon Ranch soil.

Kai tied the towel around himself, then shaved. He didn't know who would take care of emptying the tin tub, but that question could wait until he got his clothes back. He walked out of the screened area and over to the door of the office room, shivering now that he was farther away from the fire in the fireplace.

"Skylor!" he said as he knocked.

"Come in!" Skylor called.

He opened the door. Skylor was sitting on the office sofa, but instead of wearing her uniform, she wore only an emerald green silk ladies' wrapper. It perfectly matched the color of her vibrant eyes. Her satin red hair flowed freely around her shoulders, no longer confined to a military bun.

"Wha-what's going on?" Kai sputtered.

Skylor rose from the sofa and sauntered past him to close the door behind him. Then she walked back to face him and put her hands on his bare shoulders, caressing them.

"I discovered something interesting involving you," she murmured.

Kai swallowed hard, struggling to ignore the touch of her hands. "And what would that be?" he gulped.

Skylor smiled, continuing her ministrations. "Colonel Doolverr received a telegram from my father telling him to leave you alone. I saw it in his office."

Kai took a step back, surprised at what she had said. "The general of the Third Division sent a telegram specifically mentioning me? Why?" he responded, holding her hands to stop what she was doing.

"I don't exactly know. The bottom half of the telegram was ripped away. I'm guessing it was a courtesy, seeing as how the Third Division is wintering at your home. We Purples aren't all bad, you know," she jested as she placed his hands on her hips.

"But enough of that," she smiled, moving closer to him and massaging his biceps. "You probably don't remember saying this last week, but you said that war makes you appreciate the simple things in life - a tasty meal, a hot bath, and a good woman."

Kai swallowed hard. "I don't remember saying that," he said thickly. He struggled to ignore her velvet touch on his skin and the scent of her enticing floral perfume.

She moved very close to him as she purred, "Well, last week you had a tasty meal. Just now you had a hot bath."

Sliding her arms around his neck, she whispered, "And now you can have a good woman."


	43. A New Year Begins Badly in a Prison Camp

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hey there! Here's another update, quicker than I expected it would happen!**

 **I'm so excited...I was at a movie theater yesterday to see the new Spider Man movie - which was great, by the way - and in the lobby I saw a banner advertising next month's Lego Ninjago Movie! Less than 7 weeks until its release!**

 **Shoutouts to ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, Willow Falk, MasterofCupcakes, WalrusWins257, MMM, and Loki God of Evil for your great comments on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below...well, the chapter title says it all...**

* * *

 **Chapter 43 - A New Year Begins Badly in a Prison Camp**

"Skylor!" Kai reached behind his neck, firmly taking the red-haired beauty's hands into his own and breaking her embrace of him. Holding her hands tightly in front of him, he looked into her emerald green eyes.

"You're a beautiful woman, Skylor, but...my heart belongs to Sam, and I pledged to love and cherish her for the rest of our lives together. And what about Jake? You promised yourself to him when he gave this ring to you." Kai tapped on the piece of jewelry on her left hand.

Skylor looked down, tears filling her eyes. "Oh, Kai, I'm just so unhappy. When I first joined the Purple cause, I was happy that Daddy was finally pleased with a choice I'd made. And, at first, being an army officer seemed glamorous and exciting, especially when Jake and I began courting."

She wiped a tear. "But now every day I'm surrounded by dirt...and smells...and cussing, and I haven't seen either Daddy or Jake in months, and no one treats me nicely, and I'm so lonely…" She cupped her face in her hands and sobbed.

Kai felt badly for her and patted her on the shoulder. "Oh, Skylor, don't cry. I'll be -"

He was suddenly interrupted by the sound of commotion outside the closed door of the office room.

"What in the deuce is going on around here?" a booming voice roared in the main room. "I go away for one week and the discipline around here flies out the window!"

"Oh, no!" Skylor gasped. "It's Colonel Doolverr! He wasn't supposed to return from his holiday furlough until tonight! He won't do anything to you, but my reputation is on the line!" She looked around quickly before throwing herself backward on the sofa.

Kai didn't need Skylor to tell him who the voice belonged to. He recognized the voice of the burly Purple officer who had interrogated Kai and Jay when they were first brought to Kryptarium Prison. The same man who had burned Kai's foot with a fireplace poker.

The office door swung open to reveal the menacing frame of Colonel Doolverr, closely followed by two of his subordinates. Sergeant Brossette, who had been on sentry duty in front of the registration building, stood in the back with a worried look on his face.

For a moment, Doolverr's narrowed eyes surveyed the scene.

"Major Amber, what is going on here?" he demanded, noticing her tear-stained face.

"Colonel Doolverr, I'm so glad you came when you did!" Skylor lied as she stood up and rushed to the side of her superior officer. "I was just about to bathe when this prisoner somehow sneaked in and tried to assault me!"

Kai's jaw dropped at hearing the whopper Skylor had just told.

"Lieutenants, secure him!" the colonel barked. The two subordinates came out from behind the ranking officer, and each grabbed an arm of Kai.

The colonel peered intently at Kai. "Well, if it isn't Corporal Smith," he gibed. " Can't say I'm too pleased that I have to deal with you, too, along with the other problems I've discovered after returning from furlough only a HOUR ago!"

He continued. "It's a shame I was told not to torture you as long as your wife cooperates in satisfying certain...demands of" - he glanced at Skylor - "a high ranking officer from the Third Purple Division."

Skylor inhaled sharply. _Which officer?_ she wondered. _Do Daddy or Jake know about this?_

Kai glared at the commander, his eyes narrowed in anger at the thought of his beloved Sam being mistreated. "What do you mean by 'demands'?" he wanted to know.

The colonel smirked. "Well, I'm told she's quite a beauty, so I think you can guess what kind of demands I'm talking about."

He continued. "If I weren't already married, I'd be tempted to take a journey over to that ranch - Gradamod, Garmadon, whatever it is - and make demands of her, too!" he chuckled.

"You bastard!" Kai hissed. He lunged at Colonel Doolverr, but the subordinate officers' grip on him was too strong.

The Purple colonel laughed. "You know, Smith, I was told not to torture you, but nobody said I couldn't do this," he sneered, just before he landed a punch right into Kai's abdomen.

Skylor gasped.

"Ohhh," Kai moaned as he doubled over. If his arms hadn't been held by the soldiers, he would have fallen to the floor.

Colonel Doolverr folded his arms across his burly chest. "That was for your attempt to harm me. Let's go out to the main room where we can discuss your attempt to harm Major Amber. Sergeant, go place the end of the fireplace poker in the fire and move those privacy screens."

Sergeant Brossette's face turned pale at the mention of the poker. "Y-yes, Colonel Doolverr," he replied nervously before he left the group to go by the fireplace.

Colonel Doolverr looked at the two subordinates and tilted his head toward the door, indicating that they should be the next ones to go by the fireplace. They did so, half walking and half dragging their prisoner between them.

"Colonel, perhaps I was too hasty in assuming he was going to assault me," Skylor babbled as she followed her superior officer into the main room. She, like Brossette, had become very nervous at the mention of the poker. "You know, come to think of it, it probably was all a misunderstanding on my part. You see, back before the war started, Corporal Smith and I were once sweethearts..."

"Silence, Major!" the commander boomed. "In case you were wondering what I was going to do with the hot poker, I'm not going to do anything with it."

Skylor breathed a sigh of relief.

"YOU'RE the one who's going to use the poker on him," the ranking officer clarified.

"What?!" the redhead blurted out.

The colonel shrugged. "I was told not to torture him. But there's no reason why YOU can't."

"But..."

He frowned at Skylor as he removed a glove from his pocket. "Look, Major Amber. The only reason I approved a female officer to serve in my absence is because you happen to be the daughter of an old friend of mine. Now show me that you have the guts to be a real officer, and don't be an embarrassment to your father!"

Skylor accepted the glove but avoided eye contact with her superior officer. "Yes, Colonel Doolverr," she said in a subdued voice.

She walked over to the fireplace, passing Kai without looking at him. By now, the Yellow soldier had recovered enough from the punch to regain awareness of his surroundings. He watched sorrowfully as she placed the glove over her hand, then slowly bent down and grabbed the handle of the poker, lifting the iron out of the fire.

"Hold him, men," the colonel ordered.

"Uhhh," Kai groaned as the soldiers slammed his chest against the wall, each man pressing an arm against it as well. Temporarily breathless from having the wind knocked out of him after the wall slamming, Kai rested the one side of his face against the wall which allowed him to see what Skylor was doing. He watched her nervously.

The green-eyed officer walked slowly over to the prisoner. The hand that held the hot weapon was slightly trembling.

"Hurry up, Major! It's going to cool off!" bellowed her superior officer.

Avoiding eye contact with Kai, Skylor timidly held up the poker to his right shoulder and made contact.

As the hot metal seared his bare flesh, Kai squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth, sharply inhaling but uttering no other sound. Skylor's eyes watered.

"You can do better than that, Major. Mark the other side of his back," the colonel urged.

Skylor tightly pressed her lips together. Gingerly she held up the poker and touched his other shoulder.

This time, Kai moaned in pain.

"Major Amber," the commander said exasperatedly, "let me show you how to do this properly."

He purposefully strode behind her and put his burly right hand over her grip of the poker. He led her hand close to Kai's lower back and angled the heated rod of metal so as to allow maximum contact of iron and flesh. Then he firmly pressed the fire implement into Kai's skin.

Kai loudly wailed, the pain so intense that he could not stand up anymore. Colonel Doolverr signaled to the subordinates, and they guided the prisoner's fall to the ground so that he landed on his stomach.

The burly officer let go of Skylor's grip and brushed his hands together, finally satisfied with the punishment that had just been meted out. Skylor practically threw the poker in the fireplace; she couldn't let go of it fast enough.

"That's how you do it, Major. Now go put your clothes on and do something with Yellow. Just don't let him die, 'cause...someone over there in the Third Division will get mad at me. Lieutenants, come with me. I'm leaving to go have a whiskey. I need one badly."

Skylor and Brossette saluted their superior officer. Doolverr saluted back and left with the two lieutenants.

Once they were gone, Skylor rushed over to the inert Kai, followed closely by Brossette. The Purple officer kneeled down beside the Yellow soldier, who had passed out. His back was a mess.

"Brossette!" Skylor shouted, looking up at the sergeant. "Go next door to the hospital and get an orderly to help you bring Corporal Smith over there!"

"Right away, Major!" Brossette replied, hurrying out of the room. He was anxious to get help for the man who he considered to be a friend.

Skylor stroked Kai's hair a few times before she stood up to run into the office to put on her uniform, all the while mentally kicking herself for causing the awful ordeal just endured by the sweet brown-haired cowboy from Garmadon Ranch.

She wondered if he'd ever forgive her.


	44. Christmas Day at Garmadon Ranch

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy pardners!**

 **Depending on where you live, you may be preparing to begin a new school year within the next few weeks, if you haven't already begun classes. In my local school district, the first day will occur this coming Wednesday.**

 **I'd like to thank rainbowaly03 for faving my story** _ **The Fire Within: Trouble in Paradise**_ **. I appreciate that very much!**

 **And I thank MMM, Willow Falk, Loki God of Evil, ninjagogirl luvs iceage21, and MasterofCupcakes for their recent comments on the last chapter. You put a smile on my face!**

 **In the chapter below, we switch from focusing on Kai's tribulations at Kryptarium Prison to discovering what's going on with his beloved wife Sam back at Garmadon Ranch, starting on Christmas Day...**

* * *

 **Chapter 44 - Christmas Day at Garmadon Ranch**

Last year's Christmas Day had dawned bright and clear upon the Garmadon Ranch residents and the welcomed guests - Brooke's family members who were visiting from the United States city of Ogacich.

This year, low gray clouds obscured the Christmas Day sun as it dawned upon the ranch and its many unwanted guests - the Third Division of the Purple Army.

Sam, Mr. Wu, Miss Gayle, and Nya, along with her newborn son EJ, were civilian prisoners of the monarchists. The Yellow Army supporters were generally confined to their bedrooms on the second floor of the stately two-story red brick mansion. They were allowed to move about the house to perform kitchen and laundry tasks, and eat meals, but when they did so, they were monitored by house sentries.

General Chen and his cadre of Purple Army officers controlled the first floor. The Purples also occupied two of the five upper level bedrooms - the ones nearest the stairway - for they needed additional rooms for sleeping quarters. Jake shared one of the rooms with another officer.

Now that Sam had reached the second trimester of her pregnancy, her daily morning nausea had subsided. No longer feeling sick around food, she rose early on this holiday to help Miss Gayle prepare special Christmas cinnamon breakfast biscuits for themselves and their fellow prisoners. They were only allowed to use their own kitchen at certain times of the day, so when it came to breakfast, they had to prepare their meal very early in the morning and clean up before the army cook arrived to make the morning meal for the officers.

Normally Mr. Wu and the ladies ate their meals at the small table in the kitchen, for the dining room was now reserved for the officers, but today - for extra privacy - the group squeezed into the upstairs bedroom shared by Sam, Nya, and the tiny baby boy, where they enjoyed the tasty biscuits and hot cups of fragrant tea.

The only Christmas gifts wrapped this year were given to the child. Mr. Wu gave him a gold coin. Sam and Miss Gayle gave him a blanket they had knitted together. Sam ruefully observed that it was easy to differentiate which portions were done by Miss Gayle - the parts with the smooth stitches - and which portions were done by Sam, a novice knitter. Nevertheless, Nya expressed her tearful appreciation for the kind gifts.

Mr. Wu led them in a prayer of thankfulness. Yesterday Jake had shared with them the joyful news that Jay was slated to be released from Kryptarium Prison in the Christmas prisoner exchange. Though they did not know when they would be seeing him again, since they were presently behind enemy lines, they were happy he was no longer being held against his will. They prayed that next Christmas, Jay would be home to share the holiday with his wife and young son.

Sam's throat tightened as Mr. Wu voiced his supplication that Kai would also be able to spend next Christmas at home with her and their child.

Whereas the Garmadon Ranch folks had to fix their breakfast before the officers, they had to wait to prepare their midday meal until after the officers ate theirs, so it was already after one o'clock in the afternoon when they finally finished consuming their second simple repast of the day. Today, as a thank-you gesture for baby EJ's blanket, Nya offered to take over Sam's duties of helping Miss Gayle clean up the kitchen. Since the little boy was sleeping, Nya simply bundled him in a basket and put him on the kitchen table while she worked. Sam thanked Nya for the unexpected opportunity to relax.

Before she headed upstairs to their shared bedroom, however, Sam threw on her shawl and stepped outside the back kitchen door, holding a plate of leftover food from the recently completed meal. The two Australian Shepherd dogs, Blaze and Flash, rushed up to her in an enthusiastic greeting.

Playfully rubbing the tops of their heads with her free hand, she felt bad for them. Ever since the army had shown up, they now had to be tethered to long ropes instead of being able to roam freely. It was for their own safety, so that a bored - or drunken - soldier would not be able to use the sweet animals as target practice. Also, the dogs were now forbidden to enter the house, even to sleep in the kitchen during the cold winter nights. Protests by Sam and Nya, the canines' mistresses, goaded Jake into arranging for some soldiers to build a doghouse outside the back door, which provided the pets with at least some shelter from the elements.

"Enjoy!" she smiled at them as she slid the contents of the plate onto the ground. The dogs happily partook of the food as she went back into the house.

Upstairs in the bedroom, Sam decided to use her free time to sit at the writing table and compose a letter to Kai, telling him about Christmas Day at Garmadon Ranch. Jake had promised to arrange for letters to be delivered to the imprisoned Yellow soldier. Sam wasn't sure how much trust she could place in his promise, based on how he had cruelly faked romantic interest in her, back when they both lived in Tonbos, their hometown back in the United States. But the possibility of communication with her brown-haired cowboy motivated her to put pen to paper.

Sam had not gotten very far in her letter writing when she heard a soft knock on her open bedroom door. She looked up to see Jake standing in the doorway.

"May I help you?" Sam asked in the most formal tone she could muster.

Jake perceived her icy attitude toward him. He took a step back and held his hands up in surrender fashion. "Hey, I'm off duty for a few hours, and I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to go for a Christmas Day ride around the countryside, maybe spend some time chatting about the old days...catching up on news of what's been going on with you, me, old friends. That sort of thing."

Sam considered his invitation. Since the Purples had arrived, there had been little one-on-one conversation between herself and Jake. Right now he seemed sincere in wanting to establish an association of good will between them. Perhaps he had matured since their days in Tonbos. Sam had to admit that, at the very least, she was interested in news of the various people within their common circle of friends from their hometown.

Sam agreed to ride with him. "All right. I can be on the front porch in five minutes. Tell the house sentry what we're doing, so that he'll know why I'm going out there," she replied.

"Sounds good. I'll bring a cutter around."

He left, and Sam stood up from the writing table to put on her coat.

A few minutes later, Sam was seated next to Jake on a small sleigh as he urged his horse forward. As they traveled around the side of the house, Flash and Blaze spotted them and began to growl and snarl, straining against their ropes.

 _Sakes alive! What's gotten into those dogs?_ Sam wondered silently as the travelers headed away from the house and began their jaunt.

Soon the cutter was passing through the land where cattle once serenely grazed in the picturesque meadow. Rows of purple tents now occupied the space. The winter sky was gray and the air was cold. The breaths taken by Sam, Jake, and the horse were clearly visible.

Sam waited for Jake to speak. He remained silent, so she began the conversation. "Have you heard from Mary Adams since she moved overseas to live with her new husband?" she asked. Sam had discovered this news about their friend in an attempt to match Mary with Zane nearly a year ago, before the platinum-haired cowboy found the love of his life while convalescing in the Sasnak City military hospital.

"She sent a letter last Christmas, but I haven't heard from her since then," Jake answered before becoming quiet again.

Sam thought of more friends to inquire about. "So...do you still have contact with Sarah Brock?" she inquired, breaking the silence once more.

"I saw Sarah last year," Jake responded. "She married a lawyer and has two sons." He said nothing further.

Sam sighed in exasperation at his reluctance to talk to her. "How about David Cook?" she tried again.

"David's father passed away and now David is running the family's cargo ship line."

Jake slipped into silence again. They were now leaving the open pasture and heading into the woods.

Sam became irritated. "For someone who said he wanted to chat about old times, you're certainly not being very chatty," she scolded him.

"Actually, I didn't take you on this ride for a casual chat," Jake admitted, keeping his eyes focused straight ahead.

Something in his voice alarmed Sam. She swallowed. "What do you mean?"

"I'm taking you to see General Chen."


	45. Christmas Day Ends Badly at the Ranch

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy readers! I'm excited to be posting this chapter just 26 hours after the previous one! Not that I wrote this chapter from scratch in less than 26 hours - no, the way I usually write is to put basic ideas down, then refine and refine again and refine some more until I'm happy with it. This chapter was actually months in the making.**

 **I will include my shoutouts of thanks to the Chapter 44 commenters when I post the next chapter.**

 **The chapter below includes an Easter egg relating to Ninjago Episode 41,** _ **The Forgotten Element**_ **. See if you can spot it!**

 **In the chapter below, Sam discovers the awful plans in store for her...**

* * *

 **Chapter 45 - Christmas Day Ends Badly at the Ranch**

"Why does General Chen want to see me?" Sam asked nervously. "And why can't he just talk to me at the main house?"

Jake braced himself for her reaction as he said, "He wants you to be his...companion this afternoon. His...female...companion."

Sam's eyes widened as the meaning of his words sank in.

"You bastard!" she spat out as she turned toward him and backhanded his cheek with all her strength. "You tricked me into coming with you!"

While he held the horse's reins with one hand, Jake caught her wrist with the other hand and squeezed as hard as he could in order to stop her from attacking him further.

His action was effective. She winced in pain.

"Listen to me, Sam," Jake hissed at her. "I had to get you to come with me somehow! Kai will be tortured if you don't cooperate!"

"Wha-at?" she exclaimed through gritted teeth, still enduring his strong grasp.

"There's a colonel at Kryptarium Prison who's known for his cruelty to prisoners. But he and General Chen are friends, so Chen is having him leave Kai alone as long as you...keep Chen happy. If you don't cooperate, Kai won't be safe!"

Jake let go of her after a few seconds. Stunned at what he had just told her, Sam sat back in her seat, nursing her wrist.

It suddenly dawned on her that they were heading in the direction of the cottage which Kai and Sam called their home before Kai left to go to war and Sam vacated it.

Sam recalled how, on the day Kai proposed marriage, he had said he couldn't wait for her to see the plot of land he had chosen for their little house to be built on. "Pretty little area right by the Ninjago River" was how he described it. He had liked the secludedness of the parcel.

Today, secludedness was not a good thing.

"Where are we going?" she asked Jake in a low, quiet voice.

He knew that she knew what their destination was. "A scout found your house," he answered. "The name 'Smith' carved above the door made it easy to figure out whose cottage it was."

Then he chuckled. "Looks like you folks were using it to hide some of your things. Chen especially likes that one oil painting with the colors of red and purple."

Sam didn't respond. As she subconsciously fidgeted with her engagement and wedding rings she wore under her glove, she was frantically racking her brain, struggling to think of a good way out of this bad situation.

Unfortunately, she could not do so.

Minutes later, they reached her cottage. Jake guided the horse to the front door, quickly stepping out of the cutter and around to grasp Sam's upper arm. He really didn't think she would try to escape, when her husband's well being was at stake, but he wanted to give the appearance of being a good soldier in front of his future father-in-law. He depended on Chen's approval of him in order to be promoted to the rank of colonel.

He escorted her to her own front door. Her shoulders were slumped and she offered no resistance. She reminded him of a lamb being led to its slaughter.

Jake knocked on the door. Chen opened it, chomping on a cigar.

The Purple major saluted his superior officer. "Mission accomplished, sir."

Beyond the general's shoulder, Jake could see into the room he had helped Chen set up yesterday, but now there were additional touches. A warm fire burned in the fireplace. A wine bottle, flanked by two glasses, sat on the small table near the parlor sofa. A framed wedding photograph of Sam and Kai sat on the mantel.

 _Chen probably brought that photograph from the old rancher's office and put it there on purpose_ , Jake thought.

Chen saluted back. "Good work, Major!" He reached into his pocket and handed the subordinate officer a cigar.

Then he turned his attention to Sam. "Come in from the cold, dearie," he said with a fiendish grin on his face, guiding her into the house. "I'll make sure you're nice and warm in here!" And with that, he closed the door behind them, leaving Jake standing outside. Jake turned and took the horse and cutter to the stable.

Trying to keep warm while he waited in the stable, Jake stomped his feet and breathed on his hands and rubbed them together. The surrounding woods were quiet, save for the occasional bird call and the gentle rush of the nearby Ninjago River, which was not quite yet frozen over with ice.

But eventually Sam's wails of terror punctured the tranquility of the winter soundscape.

Jake, though he had killed a few men in cold blood without a second thought, winced a bit upon hearing the noises coming from inside the cottage, so to distract himself, he pulled his hat down tighter over his ears, briefly rubbing his sore cheek where Sam had struck him. He lit the expensive cigar Chen had given to him and played a game with himself to see how long he could make the cigar last before he was finished with smoking it.

* * *

About two hours after he had delivered Sam, Jake heard Chen shout out "Clouse!"

"Coming, sir!" Jake shouted back, hustling to heed his superior's call. He stepped into the cutter and guided the horse to the cottage's front door. Chen was standing just inside the doorway, his shirt half buttoned, revealing his hairy chest. He was holding on to the upper arm of Sam, who was standing just outside the doorway clutching her coat around her shoulders. Her hair was disheveled. Her blue eyes had a sunken, hollow appearance. She looked at Jake lifelessly.

"I'm done with her for today, Major Clouse. Take her away now."

Addressing Sam, he cheerily said, "I thoroughly enjoyed your company this afternoon, dearie. I'm looking forward to next Sunday! And remember, this is our little secret!" He let go of her and closed the door.

She said nothing as she stepped into the cutter, refusing Jake's assistance.

In the dimming late afternoon winter sky, Jake took occasional sideways glimpses of her as he guided the horse. He saw that she was staring at her lap, avoiding eye contact with him. They traveled in silence during the entire ride back to the main house.

Finally they arrived at the front porch of the stately two-story red brick mansion. She stepped out of the cutter, then looked him in the eye and finally spoke to him.

"Bastard!" she hissed.

As she turned to walk away, he said the only thing he could think of at the moment.

"Merry Christmas!"

She kept walking.

She walked up the porch steps, through the front door which the sentry on duty had opened, and up the stairway to her bedroom. She was thankful not to have encountered her loved ones on the way.

But when Sam entered their shared bedroom, Nya was standing at EJ's bassinet, straightening the sleeping baby's covers. As Sam closed the door behind her, Nya noticed the blonde woman's disheveled appearance. Mainly she noticed Sam's sunken, hollow eyes.

As Sam slowly sat down on her bed, woman intuition told Nya exactly what had happened to her. Nya immediately sat down next to her and put her arm around her friend.

"Was it Jake?" she asked in a whisper.

Sam turned to the raven-haired young woman. "Chen!" she spat out before burying her face in her friend's shoulder, sobs racking her body.

Nya hugged her tightly and cried along with her.

The letter to Kai, telling him about Christmas Day at Garmadon Ranch, remained unfinished at the writing table.


	46. A New Year Begins Badly at the Ranch

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hugs to all you wonderful readers!**

* * *

 **Chapter 46 - A New Year Begins Badly at the Ranch**

 _ **The day after Christmas…**_

On the day after Christmas, Sam stayed in her bed the entire day.

Nya knew the cause of her malaise, but Sam cautioned her not to breathe a word to Mr. Wu and Miss Gayle, especially since Chen and Jake were probably going to watch and see if Sam would reveal the atrocity committed against her yesterday. So Nya told the ranch owner and the housekeeper that Sam was depressed at being separated from Kai at Christmastime, and they believed what she said.

As Sam lay in the bed on her side, staring at the armoire along one bedroom wall, the awful memories of yesterday kept coming back.

 _Those hands...that mouth...the roughness..._

And the scenario was slated to be repeated next Sunday.

As she lay there in despair, a remembrance of the legendary markswoman Bansha popped into her head. Not long before the septuagenarian had passed away, she had relayed to Sam the last words told to her by her husband Isaiah, before he had been taken away in the long-ago Snake Invasion:

 _Be a survivor so I can survive in your heart._

Those words had been the source of strength for Sam herself. When the kidnapper Morro had abandoned Kai in the desert and taken her to the Stone Mountains, she kept those words in mind as she had prepared to face life without her beloved cowboy, thinking she would never see him alive again.

Sam thought about Bansha. Bansha had lived a long life. She was a survivor. With no money or family to support her after the Snake Invasion, she lived by guts and grit, with a little help from her horse and her gun.

Her gun, which was now Sam's gun.

Which was sitting in a drawer of the armoire just a few feet away.

 _No._

She stopped herself from further exploration of the idea she just had.

 _Using it on Chen would be pointless, anyway. Jake would know who had shot him, and if word got out that I had killed him, Kai would no doubt end up a dead man, too._

A strange sensation in her abdomen interrupted Sam's thoughts. It wasn't a pain, and it wasn't her stomach growling with hunger - Nya had brought her some toast and tea a little while ago. It was more like a fluttering.

Suddenly it dawned on her…

 _The baby's moving around!_

Her baby had finally grown large enough in her womb to make itself felt, and to Sam, who had once despaired of ever conceiving a child with her beloved husband Kai, the movement was a happy feeling, indeed.

The sweet reminder that a little one was dependent on her gave Sam the extra resolve she needed to go on and play the cards life had dealt her…

...though it wasn't going to be easy.

* * *

 _ **New Year's Day…**_

The early afternoon of Sunday, New Year's Day, found Sam once again seated next to Jake on a cutter as he signaled his horse to pull away from the front porch of the main house of Garmadon Ranch.

Like last week, as the Purple officer guided the cutter around the side of the house on the way to the tent-filled pasture, the two Australian Shepherd dogs - Blaze and Flash - furiously barked at them and mightily pulled on their ropes in an effort to follow the small sleigh.

"I have some news about the war," Jake informed his passenger as they rode toward her cottage in the woods. "The governor of Ninjago asked the United States government to provide assistance to the Yellow Army."

Sam looked at him for a second, but turned her eyes forward once again, saying nothing.

He continued. "If I were you, though, I wouldn't get my hopes up," he smirked. "The members of the U.S. Congress are divided over getting involved in the affairs of other countries, so there'll be plenty of debate before any decision is made."

"And even if they do finally decide to interfere in our war," he chuckled, "we Purples will have reached the outskirts of Sasnak City by that time, and the governor will be forced to surrender before any U.S. troops could arrive."

"You sound contemptuous of your home country," she finally commented.

Jake shrugged. "I suppose I am. I gave up my U.S. citizenship and became a Ninjagoan as soon as I joined the Purple cause. How soon after YOU arrived here did YOU become a Ninjagoan?"

"I never did apply for Ninjago citizenship," she admitted, remembering the picnic conversation last spring in which she and Miss Gayle and Brooke all pledged to become Ninjago citizens once the war was over. "I'm still a U.S. citizen."

Jake's lack of response caused Sam to look over at him. He looked pale.

Suddenly she felt her baby move in her womb and let out a small gasp of surprise, for she wasn't yet used to the fluttering sensation, and she placed her hand on her abdomen.

"What's the matter?" Jake demanded, seemingly a bit tense.

"Well," Sam slowly began, looking at her midsection, "not that you would care, but I am carrying Kai's child in my womb, and the baby will be born around the first of June."

A thought struck her. "I suppose that if I haven't become a Ninjagoan by then, the baby will hold U.S. citizenship, too," she mused.

If she had looked at Jake again, she would have seen his face grow even paler.

* * *

When they arrived at the Smith cottage, General Chen answered the door with a glass of whiskey in his hand. The aroma of alcohol surrounded him. He seemed agitated.

"Come in, dearie, come in," he waved Sam in with his free hand. "Why don't you go ahead and start making yourself comfortable by putting on that purple silk wrapper? It's on the hook in the bedroom where you left it last week."

Sam knew that the silk garment of was high quality, having seen similar items in the fine department stores back in Tonbos, but last week it had not smelled fresh, and she guessed it had been worn by other "female companions" and had not been laundered in a while.

After she reluctantly entered the cottage and disappeared into the bedroom, Jake leaned toward his superior and quietly said, "Sir, there's some information you should know."

Chen waved him off. "Not now, Clouse!" He reached into his uniform pocket and yanked out a folded piece of paper, quickly shoving it in Jake's hand.

"Clouse, deliver this to Colonel Parker. The fool still thinks 200 cannons are enough for the spring campaign. Here are his official orders to obtain more artillery, and also how the additions will be used, and when they'll be needed."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigar. "Then come back and smoke this while I'm playing with your beautiful blonde friend. She's a fun toy!" he grinned.

"Sir, she's the one who I have information about," Jake asserted. "She's a United States citizen!"

Chen's eyes widened. "Clouse! Why didn't you tell me this before? If word gets out that we've been holding a United States citizen against her will, that could sway the U.S. Congress to ally with the Yellows!"

"I didn't know before. She just told me on the way here," Jake insisted. "And not only that...she's carrying a child!"

"Egads!" the general exclaimed before gulping more whiskey. He wiped his chin with his sleeve, then tapped his cheek in thought. "Hmm...well, what we can do is get her to switch her citizenship as soon as possible. Clouse, first thing tomorrow, I want you to locate the nearest King's magistrate and arrange for him to come to the ranch. It's important to take her U.S. citizenship out of the equation. In the meantime, deliver that note to Colonel Parker."

He closed the door after Clouse and chugged down the rest of his drink. Hearing noises coming from the bedroom, confirming for him that Sam was changing into the silk wrapper, he smiled and walked over to the small table by the fireplace to fill the wine glasses.

Chen filled one glass and then remembered that Sam had refused a glass of wine last week.

He turned to look at the bedroom door, wine bottle in hand. "Dearie, would you like me to pour some wine for you?" he called out.

At that point Sam timidly appeared in the doorway, clad in the purple wrapper. The thin clingy fabric left little to the imagination.

"Oooh, I like what I see," Chen commented as he ogled her. He set down the wine bottle and walked over to where she stood. Placing his hands on her hips and aiming his lips for her neck, he mumbled, "Perhaps we'll skip the drinks and get right to business..."

Sam squeezed her eyes shut as his slimy mouth explored the area below her ear. His breath reeked of alcohol and cigar smoke. His roving hands slid along the silky fabric from her hips toward the small of her back.

 _Please, please, please let this afternoon be over with as soon as possible!_ she prayed.

Neither of them noticed right away, but soon the sounds in the front yard got their attention.

The increasingly loud sound of barking dogs. And the sound of Jake yelling.

"What the -" Chen uttered as he let go of Sam and rushed to the window. She followed.

In the front yard, Jake faced a dog who appeared to have separated him from his gun and was now fiercely standing over it, guarding the weapon with snarls and growls and seemingly daring the officer to retrieve it.

 _Flash!_

A second canine ran up to the front door at full speed, slamming its body with force against the oak portal, but not hard enough to stop it from energetically pawing the wood and barking frantically.

 _Blaze!_

 _The dogs must have gotten free of their ropes and followed us here,_ Sam realized, _like they were trying to rescue me!_

Chen briskly strode over to where he had left his holster. "I'm going to teach those mutts a lesson," he grumbled as he pulled out his gun.

"NOOO! You can't do that!" Sam wailed as she rushed over to him and grabbed his arm.

"Let go!' he commanded, breaking free of her grasp.

But she grabbed his arm again, pulling the gun in a down-pointing position. "I won't let you hurt those dogs!" she cried.

"I said to LET GO!" Chen yelled, struggling to be free of her grasp.

The gun discharged.

Sam finally let go of his arm.

However, Chen's jaw dropped as, within seconds, Sam sank to her knees, and then fell all the way to the floor with a moan, and then passed out.

A dark stain on the purple wrapper appeared, in the area of her thigh, and it grew ominously bigger.

Jake burst into the cottage. "Those dogs finally ran into the woods when they heard the shot. What happ-" He stopped when he saw Sam on the ground.

"She grabbed my arm as I was holding the gun and it went off," Chen explained, visibly shaken.

Beads of sweat appeared on the general's forehead. "Go fetch one of the doctors, Clouse, and a nurse, too," he commanded, kneeling down to remove the belt of Sam's wrapper in order to tie it around her leg as a tourniquet. "But don't explain too much until you're on your way back here," he admonished.

He paused to look up at Jake. "If word gets out that a United States citizen was shot while in the custody of the Purple Army - a pregnant woman, no less - that would surely convince the United States Congress to quickly decide to help the Yellows at a time when we're not ready to strike Sasnak City."

The general turned his attention back to applying the tourniquet to the unconscious Sam. "And, Clouse, think of something to tell her people back at the main house..."

"...because she won't be going back there for a while."


	47. Liar

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hi! I could not let the month of November go by without updating this tale, which turned two years old this month. I thank all you readers out there for your support and encouragement! And I'm so sorry for not keeping up on reading other authors' great Ninjago fanfics this autumn. October and November were crazy busy due to family issues and also my participation in National Novel Writing Month, but I'm happy to report that the family issues are pretty much resolved, and I produced a 50,077-word romance novel!**

 **At the end of the last chapter of this soldier story, Samantha was accidentally shot in the leg, preventing her return to the Garmadon Ranch main house.**

 **In the chapter below, Nya is worriedly waiting for her dear friend to return, not knowing what had happened...**

* * *

 **Chapter 47 - Liar**

 _ **Sunday, New Year's Day, 5:15pm…**_

Dusk found Nya in her bedroom, cuddling her sleeping baby EJ as she rocked him in the rocking chair. The raven-haired beauty anxiously awaited the arrival of Sam, her dear friend and roommate who had not yet returned from her "meeting" with General Chen. The new mother's stomach churned at the thought of what Sam had endured these past few hours.

And why hadn't Jake and Sam returned yet? The sun had set nearly a half hour ago. And Mr. Wu had commented earlier today that his knees were aching, which told him that a blue norther was set to blow in later tonight, causing the temperature to plummet to a dangerous low.

Up until now she had respected her friend's wishes for complete secrecy about the licentiousness of General Chen. But as the minutes ticked by, her resolve to keep the truth concealed from Mr. Wu and Miss Gayle weakened, as her worry about Sam grew stronger. She nervously stroked the fine auburn tresses of her little son.

A light knock on the open bedroom door gained her attention.

It was Jake. Only Jake.

Nya was alarmed at the absence of the blonde woman who had left with him hours ago. "Where's Sam?" she anxiously demanded, dispensing with polite greetings. He was a detestable Purple, after all. A sleeveen, as Miss Gayle would describe him.

Jake licked his lips before continuing, preparing to relay the story he had conjured up on his way here. "Well, during our ride this afternoon, Sam mentioned that she missed visiting Ninjago Town, so in the spirit of a happy new year, I took her all the way there today."

"And while we were having refreshments at the saloon, the saloon keeper came to our table to talk."

 _Good start to a whopper, Jake,_ Nya sarcastically thought to herself. _Let me help you along._

"You mean Mr. Morro?" she asked.

Jake recognized the name, relying on the knowledge he had gleaned from his one night in Ninjago Town nearly two years ago. "That's him," he affirmed.

 _Morro's been dead for well over a year, saphead,_ Nya inwardly seethed. _The saloon now belongs to Rufus McAllister!_

The Purple officer continued, unaware of his blunder. "Morro said one of the saloon girls was ill. Sam immediately volunteered to stay and care for her for a few weeks until the girl recovers, 'cause you know Sam - she has a heart of gold, heh heh." Jake chuckled lightheartedly, but Nya could easily discern his insincerity.

To confirm the falsity of Jake's story, Nya asked, "Which girl needs care? Ophelia? When I worked at the saloon, I remember Ophelia would take to her bed for days at a time due to her asthma."

Jake cocked his head as if in thought. "I do believe she's the one," he answered, thinking that if Nya knew a girl who was prone to illness, he might as well use the girl in his story.

 _Liar!_ Nya silently exclaimed. _I don't know anyone named Ophelia!_

"Anyway," Jake rattled on, "I need to collect a few of Sam's belongings to bring to her during her extended stay in Ninjago Town. If you could show me where she keeps her valise -"

"I'll pack her items," Nya interrupted him, cradling the baby as she stood up from the rocker. "When are you heading back to town?"

Jake rubbed the back of his neck, pretending to give her question some earnest thought. "I'm leaving right after supper," he fibbed. He wasn't planning to return to the cabin until at least tomorrow afternoon, once he had located a King's magistrate who could be bribed to change Sam's country of citizenship to Ninjago, if she refused to - or was too incapacitated to - agree to that.

"I'll have her valise ready in a half-hour," Nya brusquely informed him as she gently placed little EJ in his bassinet. She wished for the Purple officer to leave the room before she either screamed at him to divulge the real truth about Sam's whereabouts, or broke down in tears in fear of what horrors may have befallen her missing friend.

"Much obliged," Jake nodded to her, tipping his cap to her before disappearing from the doorway.

Nya retrieved Sam's bag from under the bed and began to fill it with a few dresses and assorted wardrobe items. Not all of Sam's clothing went in the bag. Nya wanted to keep some here in the room, in case something happened to the clothes she was packing and Sam would need something to wear when she returned to Garmadon Ranch.

 _And she is going to come back!_ Nya told herself, struggling to quell the rising doubt she was feeling.

Once the valise had been prepared, Nya decided to pen a message to her missing friend, to let her know what her loved ones at Garmadon Ranch had been told about her absence. Knowing full well that her note would likely be scrutinized by enemy eyes before it arrived in the recipient's hands, Nya attempted a light and airy tone to her missive.

 _1st January 18xx_

 _Dearest Sam -_

 _Jake informed me that you'll be residing in Ninjago Town for the next several weeks in order to tend to Ophelia, Morro's saloon girl who has fallen ill once again. You have always been generous with your time and effort in taking care of the ailing, such as when Bansha was dying. Though we know you'll be doing charitable work, we will miss you back here at Garmadon Ranch. Flash and Blaze will miss you, too! From the upstairs window I noticed that they were quite unhappy to see you leave._

 _I will keep you informed on humorous little events that occur here at the ranch during your absence, and I will request that Jake ensure the delivery of the letters to you as frequently as can be managed._

 _One such humorous event happened just this afternoon after you left. Our boisterous dogs managed to escape their ropes, and they disappeared for a while. Miss Gayle and I discovered their absence while we worked in the kitchen and suddenly wondered why the customary level of outdoor noise seemed rather low. We were flummoxed as to their whereabouts, but then they showed up within the hour, with all sorts of moss on their fur. Miss Gayle and I had quite a time cleaning them up._

Nya temporarily set down her ink pen to rest her hand. Writing about the moss caused her mind to drift back to happier times, when she and Jay and Flash would come calling on Sam and Kai and Blaze at their cottage next to the Ninjago River. What fun they all had relaxing on the Smiths' front porch, sipping sweet tea and laughing at the Australian Shepherd dogs as they returned from forays into the woods, with pieces of moss dangling from their coats of fur.

Then a realization hit Nya like a bolt of lightning.

 _Dear God! The dogs were at the Smith cottage..._

 _...because they followed Sam there!_


	48. A Sergeant Struggles

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **A BIG HOWDY to everyone! Nearly five months have passed since my last update to this or any of my FFN stories in progress!**

 **In the time since I last posted, I've continued to be involved in writing. I spent time editing the romance novel I drafted in November, and I joined a romance writers' association with the hope of publishing my work at some point in the near future.**

 **But all this time, my unfinished FFN stories, just like children, clamored for me (albeit internally) to give them some attention, and I finally had a chance to do so! XD**

 **In the chapter below, the action follows the events which occurred at Kryptarium Prison in Chapter 43…**

* * *

 **Chapter 48 - A Sergeant Struggles**

 _ **Sunday, January 1st, 8:30 pm…**_

On his off-duty hours, Sergeant Brossette could often be found at the one of the local taverns of Jamanakai Village, downing a few beers and having some laughs with fellow Purple Army soldiers or civilian friends or even strangers. He loved to have fun with whoever he was with.

Tonight, however, found him taking a walk in a contemplative, somber mood. The awful events of a few hours ago had shaken him.

Before the unpleasantness began, he had happily been guarding the registration building, per Major Skylor Amber's request. It pleased him that the major trusted him well enough to play a role in her secret bending of the rules, for allowing a Yellow Army soldier like Corporal Kai Smith to bathe in a warm, private environment was not exactly something that would be looked upon favorably by the Purple Army. But throughout Brossette's life, ever since his schoolboy days and continuing through his wild youth, he himself liked to bend rules, so he appreciated the spunk demonstrated by the red-headed beauty.

And _Cho! Co!_ The attractive looking major was indeed very easy on the eyes.

But then that _peeshwank_ , Colonel Doolverr, had unexpectedly shown up at the building with those two lieutenants of his, and yet again had personally insulted him with the name "lazy swamplander" before shoving him out of the way and barging past him into the building. The colonel had then bullied Major Amber into severely punishing Corporal Smith with a hot fireplace poker, even when the woman recanted her original claim of attempted assault.

Perhaps telling her initial version of the story wasn't a nice thing for the major to have done, but she had taken it back fairly quickly. Her superior officer's actions, on the other hand, were definitely NOT forgivable.

Against the chill of the first night of January, Brossette shoved his hands deeper into his pockets as he walked. He hoped that he would never again witness an act of brutality as had been inflicted upon his friend Smith, nor observe the look of extreme devastation in someone's eyes as Major Amber had displayed when she had urged Brossette to move quickly to summon help.

The sergeant felt the need to burn off some energy, feeling like a pacing tiger in the cage of the Purple Army. During his growing-up years, his _mamere_ , who raised him when his parents died, had always tried to encourage him to curb his restlessness by channeling his energies into doing something productive. But for most of the times when he had felt at loose ends, he hadn't heeded his grandmother's advice, and instead he pursued rash courses of action. Ruefully, he realized that if he had only heeded her advice last spring after Yvonne had jilted him, he would not have enlisted in the Purple Army when the war broke out, and today he would not have had to experience all of the unpleasantness.

A few minutes more of walking, and Brossette found himself behind the hospital building. From the dim light shining from the interior through the windows, he could see where a large unchopped pile of wood sat beside a smaller chopped pile. An ax lay on the ground in between them.

 _Might as well restock the firewood. Maybe it will help Smith somehow,_ he thought, knowing that his friend was somewhere in the adjacent medical building, suffering terribly from the burn on his back. Wood chopping seemed to be a productive way to burn off nervous energy, so the sergeant set a small log in position, picked up the ax, and swung hard.

 _Crack!_

The log split cleanly, to Brossette's satisfaction. He put the pieces aside and set up another small log. He decided to pretend it was Colonel Doolverr.

 _Crack!_

"You deserved that, you _peeshwank_!" Brossette declared to the newly split log.

"Sergeant Brossette."

The quiet voice of a female startled him. He whirled around to see Skylor standing about a dozen feet away.

"Oh, uh, Major Amber," Brossette stammered in embarrassment, dropping the ax on the ground and saluting her.

Skylor lowered her head and waved her hand to the side, indicating that he needn't continue the formality. "Don't bother saluting, Brossette. I don't care anymore."

He recognized a tone of despair in her voice, which alarmed him. _Does she have bad news about Smith?_ He quickly walked over to where she stood. "Major, how is he?" he anxiously queried, knowing that she knew who he was speaking of.

Skylor looked up at him, and he could see in the dim light that her eyes were red with crying. "Kai is heavily sedated now," she informed him. "He'll have to lay on his stomach for quite a while. I got him a private room. I figured it was the least I could do after I…" She burst into tears.

Brossette couldn't bear to see a lady cry, regardless of her stature as a superior officer. "Sh, sh, Major, let us sit on the woodpile over this way so that you can compose yourself." He gestured for her to proceed toward it, and he followed her.

They sat down next to each other on the stacked pile of chopped wood. Being in close proximity to her, he could smell her enticing floral perfume. He struggled not to let it distract him.

He was taken aback by her next action, however. She rested her head on his shoulder and sobbed, "I H-HATE this w-war, Brossette!"

Skylor had just echoed his exact sentiment. " _Mo comprende_ ," he murmured, indicating that he understood how she felt. "War can sure make the _misere_."

The red-haired beauty took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself. "I was telling Kai just today about all the things I hate about this place, like the food, and about how lonely I am, and what happened today sure didn't change my mind. I hate being ordered around! I hate people being hurt!" She began to cry again.

Brossette wanted badly to comfort the distressed young woman but wasn't sure how. _Should I put my arm around her? Would she think that was too forward?_

Skylor shivered. "And I h-hate feeling c-cold all the time!"

Her comment answered his internal question. With his heart beating fast, he put his arm around her, briefly rubbing her opposite upper arm to generate a bit of extra warmth. "It IS hard to get used to these cold temperatures," he babbled in order to conceal his nervousness. " _Bracque!_ In the bayou where I was raised, it rarely gets this cold. If I was back there right now, I'd be fishin' for trout! And redfish, too."

She raised her head to look at him, wiping the tears from her face. "Your home sounds like a magical place," she commented, seeming to be calmer.

Brossette chuckled, happy that she was beginning to feel better. "I don't know about magical, but it is beautiful," he wistfully remarked, staring into the darkness. "On my way home from the sugarcane mill, I used to love poling my _pirogue_ past the tall cypress trees and watching the squirrels play on the branches and seeing the eagles fly. And listening to the bullfrogs. It was so peaceful, just like Heaven on earth," he sighed.

He looked back at her and saw her looking at him with a slight sparkle in her emerald green eyes.

"And when you came home from the sugarcane mill, was there a family to come home to?" she asked, a small smile appearing on her face for the first time that night.

He was flattered at her interest in his personal life. "There was indeed...my _mamere_ , er, grandmother. She raised me after a fever took away my mother and father." He frowned. "But she passed away about two months after I left for the war, so there's no more family left for me to go back to."

"I'm sorry to hear that." It was Skylor's turn to feel compassion for her conversational companion. "Well, the bayou sounds like a wonderful place to live," she commented while adjusting her seated position on the wood pile.

 _Did she just nestle closer to me?_ he wondered, feeling more of her body press against him.

"Are there any prospects for a Mrs. Brossette in your future?" she asked cheerily.

The blood pounded in Brossette's ears at the question about a possible future wife, but he attempted to act nonchalant. "I had a sweetheart up until the war started. She's kind of the reason I'm here right now. She jilted me and I enlisted to forget about her. But someday I hope to find a woman who will want to be my wife."

Brossette's eyes traveled from Skylor's beautiful green orbs to her cherry red lips, which seemed to beg him to kiss them at that moment. They were so tempting, and the moment seemed right.

 _Bracque! What am I thinking? She's a beautiful woman with social connections and I'm just a poor man!_ He swallowed and turned away from her, mentally scolding herself for entertaining the thought of stealing a kiss.

"Yes, I love the bayou. But you, Major, you seem like you'd be more at home in a fine mansion in a big city, eating _beignets_ while wearing silken gowns and diamond necklaces. You deserve to be surrounded in the daytime by flowers and servants...and in the nighttime by the arms of a rich man."

He dared to glance back at her. She was frowning.

" _Mo chagren_ ," he muttered in apology for seeming to have made her unhappy. He let go of her and abruptly stood up, turning away from her. "I am sorry for my _bouche_...er, mouth. I will stop being _coo-yon_ and escort you to where you want to go next."

She rose slowly. "I wish to go back to my quarters now," she announced with a formal tone in her voice.

"Yes, ma'am," he mumbled, wishing he could sink into the ground.

They left the hospital area and walked to the officers' residences in silence. She led the way to the door of her personal quarters. She unlocked it and stepped inside.

"Good night, Sergeant Brossette," she said stiffly.

"Good night, Major Amber," he replied before she closed the door.

He walked back to his own quarters, mentally kicking himself for acting like a fool in front of the red-haired beauty.

 _I should have kept my mouth shut and not let the conversation go where it did. Why did I even think she could have an interest in me anyway? Everyone knows she is betrothed to a Purple Army officer, and even if she wasn't, she seems to have some feelings for Smith._

That night, in a dream, Brossette saw Major Amber wearing her emerald green wrapper, just as she had in the afternoon. But in the dream, she walked toward him with a smile on her face, loosening the fabric belt which held the wrapper closed...


	49. Warmth on a Cold Night

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **A big Thank You to the following readers for your great comments on the previous chapter:** **MasterofCupcakes, Loki God of Evil, RandomDragon2.0, and Willow Falk, a.k.a. Willow Julien!**

 **I also wish to thank RandomDragon2.0 and Scubyrojo26 for adding this story to their Favorites list!**

 **Happy birthday wishes go to Willow Falk and Loki God of Evil, for I remember that their special days fall around this time of year!**

 **And Happy Easter to all!**

 **The action in the chapter below takes place three nights after the previous chapter...**

* * *

 **Chapter 49 - Warmth on a Cold Night**

 _ **Wednesday, January 4th, 9:00 p.m...**_

Nine o'clock on a brisk January evening found Sergeant Brossette by himself, finishing up clerical work for a fellow soldier. It was unusual for Brossette to be on duty at this hour, for he ordinarily worked during the day. Calling the morning roll for one section of Kryptarium prisoners was one of his responsibilities.

However, Major Amber had given his fellow soldier, an evening clerical worker named O'Reilly, the night off. In the man's place, she had ordered Brossette to work on both the morning and evening shifts.

He had been disappointed over this. Not only for the obvious reason that it meant extra work for him, but it also meant he would not have time to go over to the hospital and see if Corporal Smith was able to receive visitors yet. Furthermore, it meant that Major Amber was still irritated with him about their conversation from three nights ago.

Brossette rubbed his bleary eyes, glad that he would soon be able to go back to his quarters and finally collapse on his bed for a few hours of sleep before he had to awaken for the morning roll call once again.

A sharp rapping on the office door startled him.

 _Who could be wanting any paperwork at this time of night?_ he wondered as he strode over to answer the knocking.

He opened the door and was stunned to see Major Amber standing there. Though she was frowning, his heart fluttered at the sight of her.

"Uh, Major Amber," he stammered, saluting as he moved to allow her passage into the office.

"Sergeant Brossette," she formally saluted back before walking through the door and into the office. "I congratulate you on choosing to remain at your assigned duty until the end of your shift and refraining from sneaking out."

Brossette closed the door after her. "Thank you, ma'am," he responded, slightly embarrassed. _How does she know me so well?_ He had indeed considered leaving early. If any other superior officer besides her had been the one to give the order, he might indeed have disappeared by now.

Skylor removed her cloak and draped it over the back of a chair before facing him.

If the sight of her in her cloak made his heart flutter, the sight of her in a low-cut civilian dress took his breath away. The copper-colored lace-trimmed bodice revealed a lot more of her womanly charms than her uniform did. He swallowed nervously.

"I suppose you're wondering why I'm here," she said, folding her arms across her torso.

"Yes, ma'am," he murmured. She sounded very businesslike. _Oh, please, Major, don't assign me any more work tonight! I'm so tired!_

"Well, I'm here to tell you why I was upset with you the other night."

 _Major, I already feel lower than a cocodril's belly about the other night, so please have mercy and be quick..._

Resting one of her fists on her hip, she shook the index finger of her other hand at him. "It's because you dared to presume to know what's best for me!"

He supposed he had done so. He looked down at the floor.

"Sergeant, did you know that I am the daughter of General Chen?" she asked.

Brossette's head bobbed up. "You mean THE General Chen? Head of the Third Division?" Fear began to well up in him.

"Yes, THAT General Chen. So, while his military paychecks are not very abundant, over the years he's rubbed elbows with various wealthy citizens of Ninjago, who presented him - and me - with lovely gifts," she continued, poking her index finger into his chest and causing him to step backward.

"So it's true that I like being around money. I do appreciate the finer things in life, like diamonds and silks," she curtly informed him as she kept advancing forward, causing him to maintain his reverse movement.

"But how dare you say that I should be surrounded in the nighttime by the arms of a rich man!" she declared.

At this point, she had backed him up against the desk. He could not retreat further.

She removed her index finger from his chest and shook it in his face. "Where I belong is in the arms of a KIND man!"

Unexpectedly, she wove her arms around his neck in an embrace. Her enticing, heady floral scent floated around them. His pulse quickened at her proximity to him.

"Sergeant, I order you to put your arms around me."

Brossette blinked his eyes as he processed her statement. _Did she say what I thought she just said?_

"That's an order, Brossette."

Tentatively his placed his hands on her hips. His brows knit in confusion. "You think I'm a kind man?"

Skylor said nothing. Instead, she used one of her hands behind his neck to guide his head forward and pull him into a kiss.

 _Mon Dieu!_ he silently exclaimed as her feather-soft lips caressed his own chapped ones and the warm, sensuous curves of her body molded themselves against him. His hands slid hesitantly from her hips to her lower back, but as he continued tasting the cherry red lips he thought could never be his, the initial resistance melted away, and he pressed her firmly to him, not wanting to let her go. The thought that this beautiful woman was in his arms - AND had feelings for him - was making him dizzy, so he was grateful he was backed up against the desk.

After a bit, Skylor pulled away from him gently, smiling happily for the first time that evening. "Does that answer your question?" she asked tenderly.

" _Cho! Co!_ It does!" he answered, his heart pounding. But suddenly he froze, "But, Major -"

"Call me Skylor," she interrupted.

"Skylor," he repeated, enjoying the sound of her name from his lips. "Skylor, what about your betrothed?"

Skylor grimaced. "Well, yesterday I received a letter from him, addressed to me. But when I opened it, the letter began as 'Dearest Fifi.' Obviously I was flabbergasted. I read on."

The Purple officer crinkled her nose. "Seems she's a Purple civilian sympathizer from Shanville who Jake met right after the battle there, back when the Third Division was still in that area."

"Apparently she had showed him some Shanville 'hospitality' - if you know what I mean - because he mentioned 'those beautiful nights together' in the letter. Jake also mentioned he was including the usual money, so it's a regular occurrence for him to send it to her, and he told her to let him know if she needed anything else. And he said he'd come back to Shanville often after the war and visit her, which he didn't think would be too difficult because...his fiancee was quite gullible!" Skylor spat out those last words with venom.

She chuckled bitterly. "I guess that Jake mixed up the envelopes when he was writing letters, so I got the letter intended for her, and she got the letter intended for me." She rested her cheek against Brossette's chest.

"Oh, Skylor!" He drew her close in a hug of comfort and buried his nose in the top of her fragrant silky red hair. "A man who would choose not to cherish you with all his heart and soul is a _peeshwank_!"

Skylor smiled at the unusual word as she snuggled against Brossette's chest, reveling in his embrace. " _Peeshwank_ ," she repeated, practicing the pronunciation. "Doesn't sound very complimentary."

Brossette began to gently rub her back. "You're right. Where I come from it means a runt, or a little person. So have you decided what you are going to do about him?"

She looked up at him. "I am breaking our engagement to be married. I've already taken off the ring. But I'm not going to let Jake know until I can tell him in person, so I can shove Fifi's letter in his face. It might be a few months until I can do that, since right now he's way over by Ninjago Town with my father at their winter camp, at Garmadon Ranch."

 _Garmadon Ranch...that's Smith's home!_ The reminder of his Yellow Army friend brought up a question in Brossette's mind.

"What about Smith? You can't deny you are fond of him."

Skylor sighed and looked away from Brossette. "I blew my chance with Kai, but contrary to what you may think, it wasn't the other day. It actually was nearly two years ago, when he proposed marriage to me while I was living in Ninjago Town. Like a fool, I rejected him, being blinded by the Purple Cause. But being loyal to that cause has brought me only unhappiness and pain."

"So, yes, I am fond of Kai," she continued, turning her gaze back to Brossette, "but my fondness for him is now a friendship sort. He's happy with his wife, and I wish him the best. I hear he can accept visitors at the end of the week, so I will go see him."

Skylor stared at Brossette intently with her emerald green eyes. "As for me, I'm not going to blow my chance at love again."

 _Love?!_ Brossette's stomach flip-flopped. _Does she love me?!_

As if in answer to his unspoken question, she guided his lips to meet hers once again in a long, slow, soft kiss.

 _Merci, dear God in Heaven! Merci!_

When their lips eventually parted, Skylor said, "Now I have a question for you, Brossette."

"What is it, Skylor?" he asked, a loopy grin on his face.

"What is your first name?"

It took him a second for his dizzy mind to remember. "Jules."

"Jules, would you please escort me to my quarters? And join me in a little nightcap? I like to drink sherry, but you can have anything you like," she winked.

Jules' loopy grin remained on his face, and he forgot all about his exhaustion from his long workday.

"Yes, ma'am!"


	50. A Hospital Visit

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **April 9 is a significant date in the American Civil War, upon which this story is very loosely based. In 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending the conflict.**

 **On another related note, on this date in 1998, the National Prisoner of War Museum opened in the United States in Andersonville, Georgia, the location of a notorious American Civil War prison camp.**

 **Regarding the previous chapter of this tale, which took place at our fictional Kryptarium Prison, I wish to send shoutouts to Loki God of Evil, RandomDragon2.0, MasterofCupcakes, and Willow Julien/Falk for your great comments!**

 **In the chapter below, the hospitalized Kai gets a visitor...**

* * *

 **Chapter 50 - A Hospital Visit**

Whereas most sick or injured Yellow Army detainees at Kryptarium Prison were cared for in the main room of the prisoner hospital ward, which contained two long rows of beds, Kai occupied a bed in one of the few private rooms. He figured Skylor had used her influence to make this arrangement. This room had a nice-sized window, so he had the opportunity to entertain himself by watching what was going on in the world outside.

Even though his face was turned toward the window, he was not in a mood for amusement. He had laid on his stomach on this bed for five days now, his back feeling extremely uncomfortable. And he had talked to no one, save for the doctors and nurses who had come by to take care of his burn wounds. So he was alone with his thoughts most of the time.

His most pressing thoughts were about Sam.

Should he believe what Colonel Doolverr had said about Sam last Sunday, just before Kai was burned with the fireplace poker? Was his beloved wife really subjecting herself to personal violation by a Purple scoundrel for his sake? His blood boiled at the thought of his sweet Sam being coerced like that so that another man could sample her womanly charms. Charms that were meant only for Kai.

And who was it that was doing this? Was it that former sweetheart of hers, Jake, who was perhaps getting some revenge on her for spurning him years ago? Whoever it was, Kai vowed to find out and make him wish he'd never been born. And if he could, he'd send the rest of the Purples to Snake Territory and never let them set foot in Ninjago again.

Well, maybe a certain Purple soldier wasn't so bad. Brossette was a friend, just as he had seemed to be when Kai and Jay had met him, on the day they had arrived at Kryptarium Prison. The sergeant was easy-going and liked to talk, reminding Kai of Jay. Through their conversations, Kai had learned that Brossette was about ten years older, in his thirties. He hailed from the swamplands of southern Ninjago and had never married.

Another question on Kai's mind was how would he explain to Sam how he had acquired the scars on his back that would no doubt stay with him for the rest of his life? Sam would not be happy to learn that it all started when he was in a room all alone with a beautiful woman - his former sweetheart, no less - while he was wearing only a towel and she was wearing only a wrapper. It sure would seem to Sam like he was having fun while she was enduring personal indignity, even though he was innocent. He had been trying to retrieve his clothes, in fact.

Too much thinking can tire a person, and Kai dozed off after the latest round of thoughts.

When he woke up and opened his eyes, he could tell he had slept for several hours. He still faced the window, and the angle of the sunlight outside was noticeably different. He yawned.

"Hey, cow rassler!"

 _Is that who I think it is?_ Kai lifted his cheek off his pillow and swiveled his neck to face Sergeant Brossette, who was sitting in the bedside chair, grinning at him.

"Better get well soon, Smith, so we can have a contest. You rassle a cow, I rassle a _cocodril_ , and we see who finishes first!" Brossette teased.

Kai smiled wanly at his visitor, pleased to see the friendliest face for miles around but lacking energy due to enduring constant pain for the better part of a week. "No one beats a Garmadon Ranch cowboy at rasslin', pardner!" he countered good naturedly, despite feeling weak.

"We shall see," Brossette chuckled. " _Mon ami_ , I'm glad to see you still have the _fah-yuh_ in your belly." From his sitting position in the bedside chair, he leaned over and patted Kai's forearm which was dangling over the side of the bed. It was one of the few parts of the Yellow prisoner's upper body which remained uncovered by bandages.

"They been feedin' ya well here in the hospital?" Brossette asked, standing up from the guest chair to walk around the bed and toward the window. "Or are the cooks the same ones who stir up the slop for the prisoners and the enlisted men?"

"Food's all right. I can't quite feed myself yet. A nurse has got to spoon it in me," Kai answered, swiveling his head back toward the window to follow Brossette.

Brossette paused to look out the window. He could see the steamy breaths of the men walking past, thanks to the cold temperature outside. "One good thing is you can stay in this warm hospital instead of your cold prisoner shanty."

Kai grimaced. He didn't know what was better - shivering in the shanty or enduring the burns on his back. Neither option was appealing. Not wanting to dwell on it, he set about changing the subject. "So what's been going on outside this building in the past few days? Anything new?" he asked.

Brossette turned from the window to face his friend. "Well, funny you should ask that, _mon ami_. There IS something new. I got me a woman now," he grinned.

"You do?" Kai raised an eyebrow. "How'd you lasso her?"

"Well, she kinda threw herself at me, and I caught her," Brossette shrugged, smiling.

A knocking of the door interrupted their conversation. Brossette walked around the bed and across the room to open it. Kai didn't bother to turn his head to follow the Purple soldier's movement.

"Just a few more minutes," he heard the sergeant say to the person who had knocked. The door closed once more and Brossette walked back to the window, within Kai's line of sight.

"So what does she look like, this new woman?" Kai asked, resuming their conversation.

"Ah, she has the most beautiful red hair," Brossette answered dreamily. "It cascades down her back like Spanish moss from the cypress trees in the bayou. And her emerald eyes are as green as the lawn of a sugar baron's mansion in springtime...so hypnotizing."

"Sounds like a description of Skylor...er, Major Amber," Kai commented, adding Skylor's official title in case Brossette did not know her first name. He chuckled, but the laugh contained a tinge of bitterness at the thought of the woman who was responsible for him being in this hospital.

Brossette had a sheepish look on his face. He said nothing, but his silence spoke volumes.

"Brossette, is Skylor your woman?!" Kai demanded.

The Purple soldier nodded, quietly bracing himself for Kai's reaction. "She is, _mon ami_."

"But...what happened to her engagement to that Purple officer?"

"Earlier this week she found out about a lady friend he has in Shanville, so she made the decision to break it."

Kai turned his head to face away from Brossette. His emotions churned. He felt some sympathy for Skylor, and he remembered the unhappiness she had admitted to, just before Doolverr showed up at the registration building. But all this week he had wondered what he himself had ever seen in her, back when she lived in Ninjago Town. She was beautiful, sure. And she could say the right things and sweet-talk him into providing her with things like dinners, money, and the use of his horse Flame on occasion.

But she was deceptive. Those men he sometimes caught her walking with around town...she managed to convince him that they were fellow magazine reporters from her employer when they were really recruits for the Purple cause. And in the two recent encounters with her here at Kryptarium Prison, she was manipulative, disloyal, and, well, immoral. And because of her false accusation that he had attempted to assault her, he was now physically injured.

And now his only friend within 500 miles was smitten with her.

"Are you sure you know what you're getting into, Brossette?" Kai asked, still not looking at the sergeant.

"Look, Smith, I can't fault you for blaming your presence here in the hospital on Skylor, but the way I see it, she was bullied by that _peeshwank_ Doolverr. And she is truly sorry. If you could have seen her anguish that night, _mon ami_ , you would forgive her."

"Not sure I can do that, pardner."

"Let her speak to you herself. Then you will see," Brossette suggested, almost pleading. "She is waiting outside the room."

Kai sighed resignedly, in deference to his friend. "Let her in."


	51. Apology

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hey y'all! I completed and submitted my tax forms ahead of the April 17th filing deadline here in the U.S., and I'm really happy to have finished that task. Yee haw!**

 **I'm grateful for the comments that Willow Julien/Falk, MasterofCupcakes, Loki God of Evil, and RandomDragon2.0 posted on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, Kai and Skylor face each other for the first time since the disastrous events of a few days earlier…**

* * *

 **Chapter 51 - Apology**

Brossette made his way back around the bed and toward the door, and Kai watched from his pillow as it opened and Skylor entered. She and Jules exchanged smiles before he closed the door behind her.

Kai observed that she was wearing her uniform under her cloak today. _That's more toggery than she wore the last time I saw her._

"Afternoon, Kai," she greeted him cheerily, carrying a package wrapped in brown paper as well as a small burlap sack.

"Afternoon, Skylor," he responded in a monotone voice. He did not smile.

She walked toward the bed, escorted by Jules with his hand on the small of her back. "How are you feeling?" she asked the patient.

"Oh, I'm feeling pretty kedge today. Ready to start a cattle drive," Kai replied sarcastically, feeling quite the opposite.

She set down the package and the sack on the bedside table. "I brought you some things," she said in her same cheery voice as Jules helped her remove her cloak.

"Like what?" he asked listlessly.

"Like stationery," she said. "And a pen and ink to write with. I thought maybe you'd like to send a letter to Sam. You could tell me what you want to say, and I could write it down. I can make sure the letter would get delivered to her." She settled herself on the guest chair. Jules stood behind her.

"Let's see. I could say that within the course of a week, I got all moppy drinking wine at dinner with my former sweetheart and I kissed her, then later I ended up alone with her in a room with our clothes shucked off, and now I'm stoved up in this hospital bed after being accused of attempting to have my way with her. Sam would find that kind of letter so happifyin'." Kai's response was laden with bitter irony.

Skylor looked up at Jules worriedly, nervous that the friendship she'd hoped to reestablish with Kai was beyond repair. Jules gave her a slight nod of encouragement.

She looked down at her lap. "Kai," she sighed deeply before looking once again into his sad brown eyes. "I am so...so very sorry for everything I've done to hurt you. Believe it or not, I'm very fond of you. If the monarchy had already been restored to Ninjago before we met, I could very well have been your Mrs. Smith right now. But when you proposed two springs ago, there was just so much to do to advance the Purple cause -"

"And look what being a Purple has done to you, Skylor," Kai angrily interrupted. "I used to think you were a sweet girl back in Ninjago Town. Now I've seen you lie to a ranking officer, cheat on your fiancé when he was still your fiancé - Brossette told me about that - and injure me, all to suit you, you, you!" Kai flipped his head away from her, with enough force to bother his shoulders. He moaned at the discomfort.

Twenty whole seconds of silence went by. Kai started to wonder if his words had been too harsh. Then he heard her speak.

"You're right, Kai. I did do all those things. But before you decide to hold them against me forever, please let me finish."

He gingerly lifted his head and turned his face toward her again before resting his cheek on the pillow. He saw that she had a pinched look on her face.

"Before we were interrupted by Doolverr the other day, I was telling you how unhappy I was with army life. After a lot of thought this week, I realize that I've been like a square peg trying to fit myself into a round hole. I'm not made to be a Purple officer. I don't belong here. I once cared about the Purple cause, but I sure don't care anymore, after what I've seen and experienced."

She continued. "But I now know where I DO belong...in the arms of this kind man right here." Skylor looked up above her shoulder at the standing Jules and smiled. He smiled back and rested his hand on her shoulder, and she placed her own hand on top of his. "We both like to have fun and even stir up a little mischief!"

Jules laughed. "So true, _cherie_!"

Skylor turned back to Kai. "I won't resign my officership, but I won't do more than go through the motions. After the war is over, I'm going back to the bayou with Jules. I'm going to learn how to make gumbo like his _mamere_ ," she chuckled. "Daddy probably won't be too pleased with my choice, but I guess it wouldn't be the first time. I'm sure the King will keep him so busy with some new responsibilities that he won't have time to dwell on me."

"So what I'm trying to say, Kai," she concluded, "is that I'm a different person now, and I'm truly sorry for hurting you in all the ways that I have, and I hope we all can be friends from this point forward." She leaned forward in her chair and took his hand in hers.

Kai looked into her emerald green eyes and saw that they were filled with sincerity. And he saw how Brossette looked upon her with love.

"I accept your apology, Skylor," he sighed, "and I'm happy for you and Brossette. I actually need to say 'I'm sorry' to you, too. The other day I was fixin' to tell you that I was sorry for kissing you on Christmas night. I'm sorry for jawing about your cheating when I was doing it, too. And I'm sorry for yelling just now. I'm just feelin' out of sorts, and I'm really rattled about Sam after what Colonel Doolverr said, and I'm flummoxed about what to do." He blew air out of his cheeks in frustration.

Skylor, grateful that Kai didn't hate her, was pleased that she could share a positive action she had taken to uncover the validity of Doolverr's statements. "Don't worry, Kai. I wrote a private letter to Daddy in which I asked him if it were true what the colonel said, and I'm waiting for him to respond."

Kai was touched. "Much obliged."

She nodded, letting go of his hand and leaning back in the chair. "I was planning to write to him anyway, to say I understood why he felt he couldn't take a holiday furlough this year to visit me. He said that being one of the three top generals in the Purple Army is an honor, and he has to put the cause first before pursuing any pleasurable activities. I couldn't take a furlough to visit him because not all officers were able to, and it would have been bad for morale if I had been able to take one simply because I was General Chen's daughter."

Jules, still standing behind the chair, spotted the burlap sack on the bedside table. " _Cherie_ , why don't you show our corporal what's in the bag?"

"Oh, yes, we haven't done that yet. Kai, this is your uniform. After I collected it from the registration building, I had it laundered and patched." She picked up the bag and began to rummage through it. "When I was getting it ready for the laundry, a certain something fell out of a pocket. Something I'm guessing you treasure very much."

She pulled out a small object. One that had given Kai the strength to survive Morro's treachery in the desert nearly a year and a half ago, and also the strength to endure the pain of Doolverr's skulduggery upon arriving here at Kryptarium Prison.

"Sam's hairpin!" he breathed, taking it from Skylor's hand and admiring it reverently.

He looked at Skylor and gave her a genuine smile. "Thank you for keeping it safe," he whispered.

Skylor beamed, pleased to have made the cowboy happy. She reached into the burlap bag once more. "Sam's a lucky lady to have such a fine husband who cares about her so much. And...your baby-to-be is lucky to have such a fine daddy!" she concluded, pulling out a crinkled piece of paper.

Kai recognized it instantly. "My letter!" he exclaimed upon seeing the missive written by Sam last November, in which she informed him he would soon be a daddy. He accepted the paper between two fingers of the hand which already held the hairpin.

Upon taking a moment to skim the words Sam had penned, Kai looked back at Skylor. "Did your kind man tell you that 'Brossette' would make a good middle name for a baby boy?" he commented, tilting his chin at the Purple sergeant.

Jules grinned, recalling the recent conversation with Kai in which the subject of baby names had been discussed.

"I would agree with that," the red-haired officer concurred, looking up at her man with a smile. "So do you want to dictate a letter to Sam now? You could tell her that Skylor is a perfect middle name for a baby girl!"

Kai chuckled. "Sure!"


	52. A Colonel Contrives

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Howdy! The initial episode of Season 8 airs on Cartoon Network here in the USA within 24 hours, and I'm excited!**

 **In honor of this event, I am posting the next chapter of this soldier tale. Thanks to RandomDragon2.0 and Willow Julien/Falk for your great comments on the previous chapter!**

 **In the chapter below, Skylor and Jules' secret relationship is discovered...**

* * *

 **Chapter 52 - A Colonel Contrives**

 _ **Two weeks later…**_

In the middle of a cold, dark January night, Colonel Doolverr stumbled back to his quarters, with the moon lighting his way. The Purple Army officer didn't drink to excess very often, but today he had received good news today which made him want to celebrate with his lieutenants. He had received word that his first grandson had been born.

The baby was the offspring of the colonel's daughter and that pansy husband of hers. Doolverr had produced no sons of his own, so he now had an opportunity to teach this brand new scion what it meant to be a man of Doolverr heritage. Yes, he would make sure that this new grandson would grow up to be strong, ambitious, disciplined, and loyal to the King, and the lad would be taught that anything - or anyone - who posed a threat to the Kingdom of Ninjago should be severely dealt with.

Feeling a little dizzy, Doolverr paused against the side of a residence building to clear his head before proceeding on to his own quarters. He stepped into the shadows, for he did not wish to be seen exhibiting weakness in any way. He didn't really expect to encounter anyone at this time of the night, but he only trusted a handful of people. Consequently, he never bothered to socialize with most of the other officers and didn't care to learn who lived in what building.

He was surprised when, amid the quiet, deserted row of officers' residences at this time of the night, some movement a few dozen yards away caught his attention.

One residence door opened, allowing the interior lamplight to slightly illuminate the entryway, and a man stepped out.

 _Is that an enlisted man?_ the colonel wondered. _He's wearing the hat of a rank-and-file soldier. What's he doing coming out of an officer's house?_

Then he saw the man turn around again to face the doorway which, by this time, was filled with the figure of a...woman? To Doolverr, it appeared she was clutching a blanket around her body and, judging by the bareness of her exposed shoulders, the cloth was the only thing she was wearing. The man and the woman kissed.

The woman's long hair flowed freely around her shoulders. Seeing that the color of her tresses was red suddenly jolted the colonel into realizing who he was looking at...

 _Skylor!_ The daughter of his best friend Chen.

But who was the man to whom she had just bid goodbye before she closed the door?

Doolveer held himself still in the shadows as the man walked past him with a spring in his step.

The man was Sergeant Brossette.

The colonel remained hidden until Brossette was gone, and then he proceeded on his journey home, incensed at what he had just observed. As he stumbled along, he became angrier.

 _Oh, this will NOT do!_ Doolverr would not allow his best friend to be dishonored by the reckless actions of his immature daughter, who was already engaged to a rising star in the Purple military. Yet here she was, fraternizing with that lazy swamplander. _Egads! He's not even an officer!_ And if that wasn't bad enough, the sole offspring of the commander of the entire Third Division might find herself in the family way, and Chen's military career could be tainted with shame. People would question the leader's ability to control a whole division if he could not control his own child.

As Doolverr reached the door of his quarters, he resolved to put a stop to this liaison as soon as possible.

And he knew how he would do it.

* * *

 _ **The next afternoon…**_

Jules hadn't intended to visit the registration building today. In fact, in an hour he was planning to travel with Skylor around the countryside outside the walls of Kryptarium Prison.

She had told him she would create some official military reason why the two of them needed to use horses from the stable, when in reality they were simply going to go for a leisurely ride before sunset and spend some private time together. Once again she was bending the rules, one of the traits he loved about her.

Because their relationship needed to be kept a secret - she had not yet officially ended her engagement to Jake, and neither of them wished to attract undesired attention from Purple soldiers nor Yellow prisoners - their opportunities to enjoy each other's company were limited, so Jules looked forward to being with his new love any chance he got. _Cho! Co!_ The times he had already spent with her were absolutely fantastic, especially the late winter night hours in her bed, where her soft, voluptuous body kept him warm and satisfied.

But this afternoon, as he was finishing up his daily office duties, one of Colonel Doolverr's lieutenants found him and informed him that the colonel wished to see him immediately. The lieutenant had practically dragged him along by his arm as he escorted Jules to the colonel's office.

The lieutenant and the sergeant walked past the registration building's sentry and into the main room which, as usual, contained only a few wooden chairs. Jules tried not to think about the terrible treatment of his friend Smith, which he had witnessed in this very room.

The men walked through the main room and reached the interior office. Colonel Doolverr and the other lieutenant were sitting on either side of the desk, having a conversation.

The lieutenant rapped on the office's open door. "Brossette's here," he announced.

Jules saluted. "You sent for me, Colonel?"

"Yes, I did. Take off your coat and hang it on the hook over there. Men," he said, addressing the lieutenants, "why don't you go out and...do something else for a half-hour while Brossette and I have a talk. And take the sentry with you."

"Yes, Colonel," the men replied, smiling like cats who had swallowed canaries. Obviously there was some sort of secret that they knew about and Jules didn't, but they had never included the sergeant in their little inner circle, so Jules was used to being the outcast. They left.

Jules and Doolverr were now alone.

"Sergeant, let's step out into the main room while we talk." The colonel motioned for Jules to precede him.

Once they entered the main room, the colonel took a wooden chair and placed it so that it faced the fire in the fireplace. "Have a seat, Sergeant," he said to Jules. The Purple enlisted man slowly complied. Doolverr remained standing, hands on his hips.

"Sergeant, I had you brought here because I wish to tell you something about Major Amber."

 _Oh, no! Is he thinking about transferring her to another location?_

Doolverr began to pace in front of Jules. "Sergeant, I don't know if you know this, but Major Amber's father happens to be General Chen, the commander of the Third Division," he began.

"Yes, sir," Jules responded. _Skylor herself already told me that._

"And her father and I are good friends of each other."

"Yes, sir." _I remember you said that, the day you bullied Skylor into hurting Smith._

Doolver began to walk behind the seated Jules. "Now, being friends with General Chen, I feel I have a duty to watch over his daughter."

 _Get to the point, peeshwank._

Doolver was now behind Jules, out of the sergeant's line of sight. "And we can't have Major Amber's reputation soiled by a lowly lazy swamplander."

 _Oh, so this conversation is all about trying to stop me from seeing her! Well, I don't know how you found out about our relationship, but Skylor is a grown woman who can make her own choices!_

Before Jules could turn around and remind the colonel that Skylor was an independent adult, a burly arm wrapped itself around his neck and began to strangle him.


	53. A Quest Begins

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Who here is watching Season 8 on Cartoon Network here in the USA? I am!**

 **I wish to give shoutouts to MasterofCupcakes, RandomDragon2.0, and Loki God of Evil for your great comments on the previous chapter of this tale!**

 **And I thank NinjagoPotterWarriorsTrollsFan for faving me as an author!**

 **When we left off at the end of the previous chapter, Colonel Doolverr had set out to kill Sergeant Jules Brossette…**

* * *

 **Chapter 53 - A Quest Begins**

Jules frantically clawed and wriggled to break free of Doolverr's stranglehold, kicking over the chair in the process. Now he knew why Doolverr had temporarily dismissed his men - so that they could honestly say in a court inquest that they had not witnessed Jules' death, a snuffing of life which Doolverr was no doubt planning to claim had to be done in self-defense.

The lack of oxygen began to transform Jules' sense of reality into delirium, and he thought he heard Skylor's voice. She spoke loudly, but he couldn't make out what she was saying.

 _I love you, cherie,_ he mentally messaged her, realizing that he was not strong enough to break the viselike grip on his neck...

"STOP!" was what Skylor was screeching when she burst into the registration building and ran over to the men. "Uncle Oliver! Stop! Please stop!" she pleaded, reverting to the way she had addressed her father's friend during her growing-up years. She pounded her fists on Doolverr's back.

The pounding was annoying enough to make Doolverr let go of Jules, who fell to the ground. On his hands and knees, the sergeant gulped in precious air, allowing his mind to be restored to reality.

"What are you doing?!" Skylor screamed at the ranking officer, half angry yet half scared as the burly man turned around to face her.

"I'm protecting your reputation, Skylor!" the colonel growled as he backhanded her across her cheek.

The major cried out in pain, holding her face where he had just struck it.

Doolverr was not finished. "Your father is a high-ranking general who reports directly to the King, and we can't have his daughter sleeping around with every worthless scumbag she fancies, especially when she's already promised to someone!"

He smacked her again on her other cheek, and she shrieked once again, this time falling to her knees.

"If you can't control your urges by yourself, I'll help you by eliminating temptation."

He turned back toward Jules with the intent of finishing what he had started, but she scrambled back to her feet and grabbed onto his arm.

"NOOO! Don't kill him! I'll stay away from him if that's what'll keep him alive!" she wailed.

The burly man easily flung her off his arm. He turned toward her once again.

"Look, young lady, I understand that your noble father was occupied with serving his country while you were growing up, and that's why you sorely lack discipline. But someone needs to teach you a lesson in it!"

He grabbed her by her upper arm and began to smack her viciously on the face. Her cries of pain filled the air as she could not successfully defend herself.

While Doolverr was occupied, Jules stumbled to his feet, fueled by anger at the treatment his woman was receiving. Quickly he looked around for some way to stop the deranged colonel.

Then he saw the fireplace poker. Instantly he grabbed the metal object.

And swung it with force onto Doolverr's head.

Doolverr crumpled to the ground onto his stomach and lay still.

In the sudden silence of the room, Jules stood there, breathing heavily as the adrenaline still coursed through him. He looked upon the inert body on the ground. "The colonel knows how to make the _misere_ ," he commented as he turned to look at Skylor. He was shocked to see her beautiful face discolored and covered with welts. "Are you in pain, _cherie_?" he asked.

She ran to him and gave him a side hug around his waist. "I'm fine. How are you?"

He returned the hug. "I'll live," he assured her, conscious of the soreness around his neck. "You came at the right time. _Merci beaucoup!_ "

"I went to find you in your office so that we could leave earlier than we planned to go on our horseback ride, but O'Reilly said you'd been summoned here by the colonel." She looked down at Doolverr. "Something told me I should come here, too."

Jules dropped the poker and knelt down next to the motionless officer to check his pulse. Within a minute he stood upright again.

"The colonel is dead," he declared.

Skylor gave a little gasp. Jules wondered if she would faint, but she remained upright.

"I must leave here, _tout suite_ ," he announced, beginning to back away from the body. "Those two lieutenants will be back soon."

"But, Jules, what are you afraid of? You killed him to defend me! I can vouch for that."

Jules sighed. "It's not that simple, Skylor. His military rank was higher than ours. And even though you were a witness, you are also a woman, and you yourself know that the Purple Army does not treat women as seriously as it should. Look around...how many female officers are here at Kryptarium Prison? Being a woman might disqualify you from testifying in my defense in the military court!"

"But where are you going?" Skylor asked, a tinge of panic in her voice.

"That I do not know. But if I stay, I will surely be found guilty of murder and be executed!"

"I'm going with you wherever you go, Jules," Skylor firmly stated, taking him by the hand.

He took her other hand in his and sadly smiled. "Ah, _cherie_ , I love you and I am touched by your offer. But you would be giving up many things to become a fugitive like me. You would be giving up regular meals...and permanent shelter...and your relationship with your father..."

Skylor pursed her lips together. "Well, then...I know! Since I am the daughter of the Third Division commander, I'll take you right to Daddy to explain what happened, and we'll get this all straightened out in no time!" she blurted out.

Giving her brand new idea more consideration, she became more confident as she continued speaking. "We can explain to him our side of the story, in person. We'll go to Garmadon Ranch right away on the horses we were going to ride anyway, and we'll just have to avoid interacting with any soldiers before we can reach him. Oh, I just know Daddy will listen to me! He can issue an order to pardon you, and everything will be all right again!"

She looked into Jules' eyes with earnestness. "Please, Jules. Let's do this."

Jules looked back into her beautiful green orbs. He wasn't entirely sure that deliberately riding 500 miles deep into Purple territory to meet with the leader of the Purple Army's Third Division was a good idea for someone who had just killed a Purple officer, and a friend of the general at that, but it was the only idea they had at the moment.

"We will need food," he stated, indicating his tacit agreement to follow her suggestion. He ran into Doolverr's office with Skylor closely following.

Skylor spotted the confectionary jar on the desk. "I'll gather up the candy while you look in his desk," she suggested.

A search of the drawers revealed a bottle of whiskey, some cigars, a bag of coins, and a jeweled knife. "Maybe we can trade these for provisions on the way," he said as he tucked the items in the pockets of his coat, which still hung on the coat hook.

As Skylor moved around the office, her swishing skirt caught his attention.

"If only we had a man's uniform for you to put on later, for people will likely be told to look out for a man and a woman. And if you looked like a man, you would be less of a target for any _saleaus_ on our journey who might try to have their way with a pretty woman such as yourself."

Skylor knelt and retrieved a box under the office sofa. "I came across an extra pair of Doolverr's uniform trousers when I was in here on New Year's Day," she explained, ashamed of the reason for being in the room on that particular occasion. She swiftly rolled the garment into a tight log. "I'll put this in my bag when we leave. I dropped it by the door when I came in."

When they finished scouring the office for items they might need on their journey, they went back into the main room. Jules approached Doolverr's body and took the dead man's gun. "That lieutenant told me to leave my own firearm at the office. Now I know why."

The couple quickly prepared to leave the registration building. After pulling up their scarves to hide their bruises as well as to protect them from the chill of the afternoon, they took one last look back at Doolverr's body as they exited.

"Too bad he was a _peeshwank_ ," Jules muttered. " _Allons, cherie!_ "

Despite the urgency to leave Kryptarium Prison before the colonel's body was discovered, the couple maintained a calm facade as they casually walked to the stables and collected the two horses which had been saddled for them. Due to Skylor's status as an officer, they were expediently ushered out the front gate of the prison. They kept the horses at a sedate pace until they felt they were out of sight of the gatekeepers, and then they began to madly gallop in a northwesterly direction. They were grateful that the ground was currently bare of snow and thus their tracks could not easily be followed.

 _Laissez les bon temps rouler!_ the swampland native thought to himself as he and his lover made their way through the countryside. _Let the good times roll!_

They were now on their way to Garmadon Ranch.


End file.
